Saatchi & Saatchi

Client: EE
Product: Hope United
Title: Not her Problem
Media: TV & Online
Country: United Kingdom
Date Of Campaign: 29 July 2022

Background: The Women’s Euros was due to be the most watched women’s sports tournament ever, hosted in England and as Home Nations sponsor the stars were aligned for EE to capitalize on this moment to drive forward our Hope United campaign; tackling online hate. The target audience was the whole of the UK, with a focus on men to play their part in tackling the sexist hate we knew this tournament would drive.

Idea: Our TV ad needed to hero female players, but also reach out to men. So rather than a ‘woe is them’ tone, we created an unapologetically visceral representation of the women’s game. Featuring powerful real stories from the women themselves, before using some of the most influential men in the game to encourage other men to step up and tackle sexist hate directly.

Results: On both a brand and societal level, the campaign generated serious impact during its flight from June to August 2022. EE masterbrand brand closeness and consideration moved two percentage points from 42% to 44% and 35% to 37% respectively. FCPI metrics also lifted from 7% to 8%. Our TVC reached 35 million people, and generated £3.02 million in earned media, including mentions from the BBC, Metro, The Times and Marie Claire. Not forgetting the 3.8 million Brits we helped become better allies with digital lessons for tackling and reporting hate. During a watershed moment for women’s football, and women in general, our film drove awareness and action around online sexist hate like never before. By empowering men to be better allies, instead of painting women as victims, we transformed a nation of bystanders into upstanders at the very moment our Lionesses made history.