Alcohol adverts seen nearly once a minute during Euro 2016 games
Alcohol Concern has analyzed how much English and Welsh football supporters watching the Euro 2016 games were exposed to alcohol ads. During the group stages of Euro 2016 the saw alcohol marketing almost once a minute during game play, the study shows.
Over the five group matches played by England and Wales – including the game between them that ended in a 2-1 victory for England, the Carlsberg brand was seen 392 times. This equated to an average of 78.4 a game, or once every 72 seconds.
“The volume of alcohol marketing in sport, especially in football, which is popular with children and younger people, is enormous, said Tom Smith, Head of Policy at Alcohol Concern.
We already know from our previous research that half of children associate leading beers with football.”
The match between England and Wales, for example, was viewed by more than 11 million people on the BBC and S4C broadcasts. A significant proportion of that audience will have been under 18, since screenings of the game were arranged for children in primary and secondary schools across Wales.
Carlsberg managed to sidestep this by replacing their brand name on pitch-side adverts with one of their well-known slogans, in the instantly recognisable Carlsberg font. So, when children sat down in school halls across Wales to watch the big match, they were treated to a game packed with alcohol adverts,” said Alcohol Concern Cymru Director, Andrew Misell.
The campaign Big Alcohol Exposed is keeping track of the different ways Carlsberg makes it brand visible, targeting children and youth during the football tournament, despite French alcohol marketing regulations.
With the French Evin law (‘Loi Évin’) banning alcohol sponsorship of sporting events and alcohol advertising on television, the Euro 2016 sponsor Carlsberg replaced its brand name on pitch-side digital boards, and on logo walls behind interview partners with one of its well-known slogans, written in the brand’s iconic font.
In the social media, however, Carlsberg is more aggressive. Another example is the so called “Carlsberg man of the match” award.