The “Super Bowl Sickie" campaign created for ESPN Australia leveraged a quintessentially Australian cultural quirk — the tendency to take a “sickie". With the Super Bowl airing live on Monday mornings in Australia due to time zone differences, the campaign tapped into the universal truth that many fans face: sacrifice work hours or miss the game. By humorously reframing the conflict as an opportunity for creative problem-solving by 'taking a sickie', the campaign resonated with local audiences who recognised the relatable tension between responsibility and fandom.
U.S. Sport through an Australian Lens
After the huge success of the Super Bowl Sickie campaign in 2024, Now We Collide expanded the 2025 Super Bowl Sickie into a fully integrated campaign with a blended strategy that involved broadcast, multiple social channels, influencers and traditional above-the-line media, all of which pointed to a bespoke competition landing page, where one lucky viewer and a friend could win the Ultimate New Orleans Experience and most importantly, download their Super Bowl Sickie Certificate!
Australian culture combined with world-renowned talent
The campaign hero creative launched with video assets across ESPN broadcast and digital platforms. Led by a stuffy corporate boss discovering that his team has taken the Super Bowl Sickie day off, a surprise is provided with a call to action from ESPN superstar pundit, Stephen A. Smith. Smith’s personality and dour delivery ignites fans with his trademark style and demands the attention of anyone else in the vicinity.
The campaign was extended by creating buzz and conversation across social channels by a number of “Sickie Plays of the Day” that used increasingly outrageous excuses to call in sick on Super Bowl Monday. A competition-specific message with details of how to win the Ultimate New Orleans Experience was narrated by ESPN NFL Blitz host, Phil Murphy.
All campaign media was optimised for viewing on each platform and device to allow fans to engage and share.
A team of influencers mimicked the campaign direction with a myriad of their own Super Bowl Sickie excuses, adding an additional layer to audience reach and engagement.
Results
The 2025 paid, owned, and earned strategy exceeded expectations by substantially increasing website traffic, social media engagement and sickie certificate downloads.
The competition element garnered a high level of interest from die-hard and casual fans alike and viewership numbers were among the best ratings in ESPN Australia’s history.
The campaign exceeded its KPIs on all metrics across every platform, and campaign press coverage was robust for a second year running. Interest in the campaign once again spilled out of the ESPN eco-system and into broadcast competitors' news stories - one rival even took to social media to post a rebuttal to the Super Bowl Sickie, proving that the cultural phenomenon has made an impact on the Australian sporting landscape.
