PR Stunt Watch: Sydney Sweeney controversy queen, Columbia's pictures of feet; and Rolex's 007 moment

It’s been a big week for sport, and that gift has given us the PR Stunt Watch stories this week.

We’ve got a betting app causing upset, a hiking brand in the feet-pics business, a cheese brand betting big, and a TV director who pulled off the best bit of brand work this week, without a brief.

Sydney Sweeney tells us it’s “Just Sports"

We’re starting with the stunt that’s on everyone's lips, from none other than betting company Novig and the queen of controversial stunts, Sydney Sweeney.

Last year, Sweeney had great jeans. This year, she has no clothes at all, and a sports betting app. 

Novig’s big pitch is that, unlike some of its rivals, you can't bet on wars, deaths or politics… only sports. So, they employed Sweeney "wearing just sports”, pictured naked, hiding behind footballs, rackets and a basketball hoop. She's also an equity holder (this feels like a new PR tactic), and the CEO says it was her idea.

This would make sense, as she’s become the “float it down the Thames” of causing controversy in the world of ads – and if you go off the noise it makes, it worked again. It gained millions of views in a few days. Sweeney really knows how to grab the headlines with her ideas, something earned creatives hope for every day.

I’m not going to use this column to project my views on you. There are plenty of other write-ups to get your kicks on that. Side note: this is not my Ed Sheeran moment.

The attention may have been easy to get, but the message of “nothing but sports” has been overshadowed by the controversy. This begs the question: “Is any PR good PR?” Let’s wait to see Novig’s numbers after this campaign – but good luck getting that from a betting company.

Columbia wants pics of your feet

Moving swiftly on to selling other parts of our bodies. This one had a totally different tone. To launch its new Peakfreak hiking shoe, Columbia leaned into the name, with the right level of humour, but a little bit freaky. Columbia will pay £135 for photos of your bare feet – as long as you took them outdoors on a hike.

What I like is that the joke carries the product. Outdoor footwear ads are usually summit shots and moody drone footage, but this one is about the feet that got you up there. It gives people a reason to talk about comfort, without anyone saying: "cushioning technology".

With the advertising pegged on buying feet pics on the internet, I'd love to know what the community manager's week looks like. It's cheeky rather than seedy, and lives natively on social.

I have a lot of time for this one. Really brave for a brand to put out a message like this.

US Open pulls off covert operation

We’re heading over to the US for the last couple of stunts. First up, the US Open. 

What I love the most about this is that it wasn’t a campaign in the traditional sense. Nobody sold it in, and there's no agency to credit. But it's still one of the best brand moments of the past week.

If you remember, this year the US Open had a bit of backlash when it first started. This was over its use of influencers, and the disruption they caused. Who would have guessed that influencers can’t read a room?... Anyway, they’ve redeemed themselves and repositioned the Open as somewhere that notable and respectable people go – even people like James Bond, the pinnacle of a gentleman.

During the men's final, the director held on the courtside clock as it read 0:07, then cut straight to Pierce Brosnan in the crowd. No caption was needed.

Fans called it "absolute cinema", and the internet did everything else. Most brands would have tried to explain it and make it into a big, lengthy video. Instead, a quick video caught everyone's attention.

Those attention-economy people were right all along!

We’ll pay you in cheese

Finally, a cheese brand, Kraft Singles, has stepped into the world of the NFL in a way that you wouldn’t have expected them to. I understand that my audience is mostly British, so here's a quick recap before I share the campaign.

Andy Reid might be the most wholesome man in American sports. The Kansas City Chiefs' coach (I'm sure you know that team), has a catchphrase: "Bet you a cheeseburger" and "Treat you to a cheeseburger".

So, Kraft Singles has built a microsite for the public to be able to bet against Andy's team, with no monetary value. This upcoming National Cheeseburger Day, on 18 September, Kraft Singles is asking fans to bet against Andy. The prize? Cheese.

Two brands this week wanted to talk about betting on sport. One used a naked TV star and made everyone angry. The other used just an old-school football coach and a winning, super localised campaign.

Article written by Lee Sanders, creative director at Here Be Dragons. First published on PRmoment.com.