Sonny Bill Williams Fronts New Rebel Sport Ad

Sonny Bill Williams Fronts New Rebel Sport Ad Campaign

Down-to-earth Canterbury player shows star quality in face of disaster

New Zealand sporting goods retailer Rebel Sport has confirmed that it has secured Sonny Bill Williams as the face of its new ad campaign. The first ad in a series of six featuring the starting second-five for Canterbury will go to air tonight on TV One, TV2 and TV3.

Watch a sneak preview of the ad here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Heo_5OS41DI

Rod Duke, CEO of Briscoe Group, which owns Rebel Sport, says that he’s rapt that they are the first New Zealand company to be working with the dynamic and in-demand Williams since his return to rugby for this campaign to launch its new season clothing, footwear and equipment lines.

“Sonny is a natural fit for the Rebel Sport brand, as he is so well known with a wide appeal to Kiwi sports fans,” says Mr Duke; “He’s as strong a brand as he is a sportsman, so we’re naturally very excited about his involvement with this campaign.”

Mr Duke says Rebel Sport is also greatly indebted to Mr Williams for his hard work and positive attitude in making it to Auckland for the ad shoot all the way from Christchurch on the same day the region was hit by one of the largest earthquakes in New Zealand history.

Williams, a resident of inner-city Christchurch, had gone to bed on Friday night having just played his first game for Canterbury, helping them to a 28-9 win over Bay of Plenty. Having had little sleep following the game, he was woken up – along with the rest of the city – by the 7.1 Richter scale quake that hit the Canterbury region at 4.35am.

Mr Duke says Williams managed to get on a helicopter to Wellington, then a flight to Auckland, then another helicopter flight to the North Shore to get to the Rebel Sport store in time for the shoot at 4.00pm.

“Sonny is a consummate professional, with an amazing down-to-earth nature. His positive attitude in working with us through what was a rigorous 12-hour shoot last weekend was inspiring, especially considering the circumstances.”

“We know Kiwis are going to enjoy this ad series, and we’re looking forward to seeing more brilliant performances from Sonny on screen and on the field in the months to come,” says Mr Duke.

Rebel Sport’s campaigns have a proud history of attracting top sports stars, with ads over the last year featuring Super 14 players, boxer David Tua, and most memorably – the 2009 new season campaign starring French rugby behemoth, Sebastien Chabal.

The first ad in the new series will air tonight around 6.50pm, on TV One, TV2 and TV3.

ENDS

© Scoop Media