LG's Football Promotion Might Get You An ASBO

Is this funny or cruel? Is it an ad for football or electronics? In this latest spot from LG Nederlands, everything gets a bit weird.

A man, encouraged by his giggling sidekick, kicks a ball at strangers in a park and knocks them out with his killer aim. One man with particularly quick reflexes dodges the ball, only to be pelted in the back of the head as he runs away.

What this is actually advertising is a new feature on LG phones that means you will never have to miss a hit again, as their Push Goal Alert will send you notifications every time your team scores during the Premier League.

Through also promoting the hilarity involved in punting footballs at unsuspecting passersby, and getting it's more mischievous viewers into some trouble in their local parks, the ad is proving popular, having gained 13,865 views in one week.

Disclosure: Unruly is distributing this video on behalf of LG. This post is not part of the commercial plan and is written by the editorial team at Unruly, whose opinions are- always independent, sometimes scurrilous, and never knowingly under-researched.

Get Involved With Politics, Football And Kerry From Daventry's Maracas With The Sun

We Brits are famous for our stiff upper lips, that reserved composure that ensures we keep our heads when all around us are losing theirs. But there are some things that will get us riled up: football, politicians, sleaze and scandal. Now one controversial newspaper is trying to get us back to talking about these, and not their own indiscretions. 

Lately The Sun has spent more time in the news than reporting it. Allegations of phone hacking and bribing public officials have sullied the reputation of what was once Britain's best loved newspaper.

Now the tabloid is hitting back, reminding us of all the other things that Brits love to read and gossip about with two slick new ads. Both star a tubby, bearded everyman figure walking briskly through the scenery, waxing lyrically about the things the nation loves and loathes. 

In the first ad, he struts down a typical high street raving about "supporting our troops, singles mums, policing and how to tone your bums".

He continues on to offer money off petrol, holidays and family days out, rapidly followed by advice on cooking sprouts. Then comes the paper's famous Page Three girls in the form of "Kerry from Daventry shaking maracas" closely followed by "half-naked footballers in their undercrackers".

The second ad sees our hero strutting through the terraces, reciting verses about the highs and lows of the football season. "You'll cheer, you'll jeer, you'll get tears in your beer, it's going to be a belter, get involved this year".

Put together by Grey, the two ads have run on TV and found fans online. The high street clip has garnered over 8,000 views, while the football clip has attracted 2,000 in five days.

They may not be earning massive audiences, but the message is clear: The Sun hasn't set yet.

The Sun - Get Involved

The Sun Football - Get Involved

Rooney Fronts Latest Nike Advert

With the Olympics and Wimbledon coming up and Euro 2012 in full swing, England has gone sporting mad. Brands have, of course, been quick to latch on to this sporting fever, with Nike's "My Time Is Now" campaign currently leading the way.

Following the interactive "Hidden Tunnels" advert and the "Magic Soccer Night", the latest installment from the campaign features a close-up of Wayne Rooney listening to football commentaries about himself, before dramatically turning his gaze to the screen.

Simple? Yes. Effective? Yes. But Rooney, who seems almost drawn to causing trouble for himself, has managed to get the campaign banned from Twitter as he and England midfielder Jack Wilshere posted the link without stating that it was a Nike endorsement.

This went against Twitter's advertising code, which states that a disclaimer must be included when someone is being paid to endorse a product.

However, the footballers argued that, since it is public knowledge they are both endorsed by Nike, and the campaign's hashtag #makeitcount was included in the Tweets, followers would not be misled by the nature of the advert.

What we would like to know, however, is why Nike chose Rooney, of all players, to appear in a topless close-up ad.

Successful and, arguably, inspirational as Rooney may be, Wilshere, Lampard, or good old Beckham would have been so much more appealing.

It seems that viewers don't mind this too much, since the video has gained 422,884 views and 72,616 shares since it launched 2 days ago.

Elderly Football Fans Star In Nike Ad

With Euro 2012 in full swing, the web is overflowing with football-related ads. Men are even coming out of retirement to get in on the action.

The biggest ad of Euro 2012 so far is Nike's epic footballing battle, My Time Is Now. This short film for the sports brand could be called My Time Was 30 Years Ago.

Magic Soccer Night was put together by writer and director Paul Wie and stars old men who never lost their love of the beautiful game.

The men sneak out of their homes after dark and gather at a 5-a-side pitch. Once the floodlights are on and the ball is in play, something magical happens. The years fade away and both teams become the young, vigorous men they used to be.  

They battle it out on the turf until they are chased away by a security guard. Nike's slogan may be "Just Do It", but they old boys are "Still Doing It", even at their old age.

Even though it's not packed with Nike's usual famous faces, the clip has become popular online, earning nearly 73,000 views in just a week. With nearly 8,000 shares, the ad might not have the popularity of My Time Is Now, but still has an impressive following.

We recommend this clip to everyone, be you old, young or miraculously regenerated through the love of football.

Ian Wright Dreams "What If" For England Euro Victory

As Euro 2012 draws closer, football fans all over England are letting themselves dream of football coming 'home'. But the fans aren't alone, a former England star is already waxing lyrical about England's chances.

The normal relationship between poetry and football is thousands of voices tunelessly shouting chants about pies. But Three Lions veteran Ian Wright is changing all that in this ad for Absolute Radio. 

Wrighty hosts the station's Rock N' Roll Football show, combining football commentary and music with chat and banter. Throughout Euro 2012, he'll be fronting the station's coverage of the competition, providing full commentary of all England matches. 

To celebrate, Wright stars in an ad to inspire England fans. The clip features the striker-turned-pundit reading Rudyard Kipling's inspirational poem If to images that chart the glories and the heartbreaks of the national team's past.

Fans watching the clip relive the agony of Maradona's Hand Of God goal in the 1986 World Cup and Gazza's tears during Italia '90. Wright implores fans to believe, to hope and to "fill the unforgiving minute with 60 seconds worth of distance run".

What if all this happens? Bobby Moore and the 1966 England team give the answer: Victory.

The ad itself is winning fans, with over 22,000 views in just three days. Appearing on Twitter and Facebook, it seems as though the ad, and it's message, is spreading.

Whatever happens on the pitch, inspiration like this will guarantee a roaring crowd for the Three Lions.

Disclosure: Unruly is distributing this video on behalf of ABSOLUTE RADIO. This post is not part of the commercial plan and is written by the editorial team at Unruly, whose opinions are always independent, sometimes scurrilous, and never knowingly under-researched.

Ashley Young Bowls Over Competition In Latest Betfair Mobile Ad

Love football? Love bowling? Well, I think you're in the right place with this latest mobile advert.  

The ad features Manchester United stars Dimitar Berbatov, Patrice Evra, and Young competing in a bowling alley.

Slight difference is that they are using footballs instead of conventional bowling balls. It's for the best; we would not want any metatarsal injuries now, would we. Would we?

The superstar players were also joined by self-confessed couch potato and footballing wannabe called Chris Weber, a clear rank outsider to win the contest.

Their challenge was to clear all 40 pins in just 40 seconds. Created by Karmarama, the YouTube video then challenged viewers to place a virtual bets on which United player has the deadliest aim.

You can also take a look at the attempts of Darren Fletcher and Anders Lindegaard.