Crown Royal this year has "increased its buy during NFL games as part of a larger sizable investment in TV ads," according to E.J. Schultz of AD AGE. Diageo Senior VP/North American Whiskeys Portfolio Sophie Kelly, whose company owns Crown Royal, "declined to detail the dollar investment." But she said that the NFL buy comes as Crown Royal will "increase its TV presence from 19 weeks to 49 weeks on air" in '19. Crown Royal last season -- which was the first after the NFL lifted its ban on liquor ads -- ran ads that "encouraged people to moderate their drinking and also drink water." This year's campaign, via Anomaly, N.Y., "sticks to the basic theme." One ad "shows a ref in purple stripes, which matches Crown Royal's brand color, who calls a water break at a bar where people are presumably watching football." Patrons are "shown drinking water before getting back to their alcohol (both beer and whiskey are shown)." NFL rules continue to "prohibit liquor ads from using a football theme." While Crown Royal in the spot "does not show any game action, the ref reference is pretty obviously a football one." An NFL spokesperson "did not respond to multiple requests for comment about whether or not the league tweaked the rules this year." Meanwhile, Crown Royal also "plans to extend the campaign into bars by putting water coolers in the establishments." Crown Royal, like it did last year, will also "distribute water bottles in branded water-bottle holders at some stadiums" (ADAGE.com, 9/5).
