The Rugby Superfan Is Back For MasterCard’s Latest Campaign

By Andrea Sophocleous

He’s worked his way into the hearts of New Zealanders and became Richie McCaw’s best mate, and now rugby superfan Tim is at it again in a MasterCard promotion campaign crated by McCann Sydney, trying to win tickets to the Rugby World Cup 2015 finals.

The campaign invites New Zealanders to register then Tap & Go three times to win tickets to RWC2015 in London for themselves and three friends.

The TV spot shows Tim dragging rugby superstar Richie McCaw across a mall, to the cinema and a questionable trip to the hairdresser in a bid to Tap & Go three times, so he can win RWC 2015 tickets and join his ‘best mate’ in London.

The campaign includes TV, out-of-home and additional video content for social channels.

Tim made his first appearance in MasterCard New Zealand’s advertising to promote card usage, in 2012, in a spot titled “Check In”. The TV spot was voted by Kiwis as their favourite TV ad of 2012 at the ‘Fair Go Advertising Awards’ and the follow-up campaign won the same honour again in 2013, while the 2014 spot made the awards shortlist.

McCann Sydney executive creative director Dejan Rasic said: “Tim has become a bit of a celebrity in New Zealand with his infectious enthusiasm for rugby and his friendship with Richie, and we always have a lot of fun bringing him to life for MasterCard. Recurring characters aren’t as common in advertising as they used to be, so it’s a great opportunity for us to develop a consistent campaign and tone for one of our longest-held clients.”

This is Tim’s fourth appearance in a MasterCard campaign.