When O2 needed to elevate the Red Roses beyond rugby’s core fanbase during the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, we did something nobody expected, we hired Britain’s worst PR guru to be our spokesperson.
Chabuddy G – the delusional “business mogul” from cult BBC comedy People Just Do Nothing, became the Red Roses’ self-appointed media trainer, kit designer, and hype man.
Across a five-part content series and reactive social content, he attempted to coach world-class athletes on media skills they’d already mastered, designed a leopard-print rugby shirt nobody asked for, and confidently mangled rugby terminology. All part of his “Try to Survive’ documentary.
This content made O2’s sponsorship culturally relevant, brought women’s rugby to life for casual fans, and made a fictional PR guru’s leopard-print rugby shirt the ultimate fashion item for fans.
- 17.65M views across social platforms
- 88.9K engagements with scroll-stopping VTRs of 6-15% (3x benchmark)
- 37,600 Priority entries to win Chabuddy’s infamous leopard-print rugby shirt
- 26M+ reach through earned media including The Sun and JOE
- Contributed to a 35% increase in awareness of the Red Roses (from 43% awareness to 58%) as part of our England, Meet England campaign with 48% of campaign viewers saying they wanted to learn more about the team (YouGov data)
England players requested the shirts. Fans who’d never watched women’s rugby suddenly knew the Red Roses’ names.
By letting a fictional idiot fail spectacularly at promoting genuinely world-class athletes, we introduced them to millions.
