Marketplace Roundup
In Manchester, Mark Sweney reports the U.K. Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has cleared a new adidas TV spot that includes MLS Galaxy MF David Beckham and singers Katy Perry and Missy Elliott at a "raucous house party" despite claims that it condoned "antisocial behaviour such as painting graffiti." The commercial, promoting the adidas Originals brand, also includes "scooters being ridden erratically, a light smashing, a firework going off and a man inhaling on the nozzle of a leaf blower." But the spot was "not shown during or immediately after children's" shows, and the ASA said that the ad "did not show people actually spray painting and that the hand painting was in a private residence" (Manchester GUARDIAN, 6/10). adidas also argued that the "scooter riders were all wearing helmets and were driving safely" (BRANDREPUBLIC.com, 6/10).
IN THE GARAGE: NASCAR Camping World Truck Series driver Johnny Benson last night discussed his Red Horse Racing team suspending operations because of lack of sponsorship. Benson: "It's obviously disappointing going into a season where you felt like things were running in the right direction and a championship-caliber race team … It's just one of those deals. We've seen it in this sport before.” ESPN’s Mike Massaro asked, "This situation has a lot of people scratching their head, a lot of people wondering how can this happen to the defending series champion? What does this say about the health of this series?" Benson acknowledged the bad economy, but said, "We've seen other teams … that didn't have sponsors and were able to go out and secure sponsors. In this organization, we weren't able to accomplish that" ("NASCAR Now," ESPN2, 6/9).
WHEELS & DEALS: GE will feature its Reveal brand of light bulb as the primary sponsor on NASCAR driver Martin Truex Jr.'s No. 1 Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevy for Sprint Cup Series races at Michigan this weekend and Infineon Raceway on June 21. The two-race deal will help GE launch a new Reveal CFL lighting product (Michael Smith, SportsBusiness Journal)....EnerSys Energy Products has reached a deal for its Odyssey batteries to serve as a technical partner of Richard Childress Racing (RCR), and the brand's logo will appear on RCR's No. 07 Sprint Cup Chevy driven by Casey Mears (RCR).
ROUNDUP: The Nike store that opened last month in St. Louis is "in fact, not a true Nike store," as "no Nike shoes are available." Instead, the store at the former Int'l Bowling Museum & HOF is being run by Cardinals concessionaire SportsService and is called, "Cardinals team store, presented by Nike" (STLTODAY.com, 6/9)....London-based retailer Henri Lloyd has retained Origin Creative Design to promote the company's new line of merchandise supporting its sponsorship of F1 team Brawn GP (CRAINSMANCHESTERBUSINESS.co.uk, 6/8).
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