LONDON, UK — Sport England today announced the conclusion of two separate competitive pitch processes that see FCB Inferno being reappointed as creative agency of record and 23red coming onboard as its partnerships agency.
The appointments are a result of Sport England looking to evolve This Girl Can over the next two to three years from an advertising-led campaign supported by paid media to a partnership-led movement that harnesses the power of partnerships to create visibility, relevance, and impact.
FCB Inferno will lead the creative strategy on Sport England which will include both This Girl Can and Join the Movement brands. 23red will bring its partnerships expertise to This Girl Can to help Sport England shift focus from paid to earned media by creating a portfolio of commercial and non-commercial partnerships that will enable and underpin this evolution.
This new partnership model presents lots of opportunities for brands to get involved in helping Sport England to engage more women in exercise. The last 18 months has seen women become more open to the types of exercise they do and how they fit it into their lives, therefore presenting a tangible role for brands to support women in numerous ways.
FCB Inferno created This Girl Can in 2015, and so far the work has led to 2.8 million women exercising. “This Girl Can” has been awarded worldwide, including a Cannes Grand Prix for Good, and the Cannes Glass Lion, in 2015. The campaign continues to push boundaries, picking up the inaugural One Show Pencil for Diversity of both sides of the camera in 2021.
Kate Dale, Campaign Lead at Sport England said: “This Girl Can is seven years old this month – we’ve achieved a lot but as we all know, COVID-19 has disrupted the lives and routines of women across the country and the gender gap in sports participation persists.
Our ambition is greater than ever: we want every woman and girl to feel willing and able to get active in the ways that work for them, and we want sports organisations to feel equally confident about meeting their needs. We know we can’t do this on our own and are therefore looking forward to collaborating with a diverse range of partners to continue bringing about change. FCB inferno and 23Red won tough, competitive pitches by demonstrating how well they understood our audiences, the challenges they face, and the strategies we need. It’s going to be an exciting, hard-working year and we can’t wait to get started.”
Emma Palmer-Taylor, Business Director, 23red said: “We have admired This Girl Can since its inception and it is a real privilege to be joining the team at such a pivotal moment. Aligning perfectly with our agency ethos of changing behaviour for the better, we’re looking forward to bringing our expertise to steer the evolution of the campaign into a partnership-led movement that drives even greater visibility and ultimately action amongst all woman.”
Sharon Jiggins, CMO, FCB Inferno said: “It has always been a huge privilege to work on This Girl Can and we have never underestimated the profound impact it has had not only on encouraging women to exercise but also on how women are portrayed in advertising. Our key insight was that the fear of judgement holds women back but there are also many structural, economic and societal barriers in place that are beyond our women’s control. And this is why bringing a variety of partners in from both the public and commercial sector is such an exciting development for the brand in its desire to ensure that every woman feels that she belongs in the world of exercise.”
