Johnnie Walker and Leo Burnett Australia have made five pairs of of handcrafted footy boots made from the boots of past icons of the women’s game. The boots celebrate the progress made in women’s sport and underline Johnnie Walker’s commitment as partner and sponsor of the AFLW.
They are being gifted to current players, inspiring them to Keep Walking Boldly, representing the resilience, courage and bravery of the women who have walked before them. The campaign tells the stories of progress that got the game where it is today.
The boots, designed by artisan shoemaker, Matea Gluščević, from Naarm/Melbourne, will be gifted by Nicole Livingstone, AFL general manager of Women’s Football, to rising stars: GWS Giants player and Olympic Gold Medallist, Chloe Dalton; Hawthorn’s Emily Bates; Brisbane Lions’ Ally Anderson; and Collingwood’s Ashleigh Brazill at a media event at RSEA park in Melbourne. The four women represent the next generation of female AFLW players, and it is hoped that they one day pass the boots on as the game progresses.
Jodi McLeod, Johnnie Walker marketing manager, commented, “Keep Walking has been an incredible rallying cry for progress for more than two decades now. Johnnie Walker is committed to continuing its support of the trailblazers who push for progress every day by partnering with those who took bold strides and those who will continue striding to push Australia forward. These boots are a homage to the 150 years that it took for a women’s footy competition to be established and a celebration of the eighth AFLW season.”
Rosie Stone & Stacey Karayannis, associate creative directors Leo Burnett, added, “When we look at the pages of sporting history, we seem only to acknowledge the giants of the game – the top scorers, the record-breakers, the superstars. What’s rarely recognised, though, is the incredible strength and decades of determination it takes to get women’s sport onto the field in the first place. With the AFLW still in its professional infancy and with so much progress to be made, we wanted to celebrate the wins we’ve had along the way and shine a light on the women who walked the game to where it is today.”
The campaign is supported by a film directed by Good Oil’s’ Renée Mao, that documents stories of the women’s game. It features sporting icons such as Debbie Lee and Erin Phillips, talking about their experience growing up playing a game that was never ‘meant for them.’ It was shot on location in Sydney and Melbourne and uses never-before-seen archival footage, tracing the history of women’s football in Australia.
The campaign, a reinvigoration of Johnnie Walker’s Keep Walking philosophy, will run nationally across digital, social, OOH and influencer, with PR led by Leo Burnett’s Publicis Groupe stablemate, Herd MSL.
Credits:
Client: Diageo (Johnnie Walker)
Marketing Manager: Jodi McLeod
Brand Manager: Emma Ryan
Brand Marketing & PR: Rebekah Allison
Creative Agency: Leo Burnett
National Executive Creative Director: Andy Fergusson
Group Creative Directors: Tim Woolford & Tommy Cehak
Associate Creative Directors: Stacey Karayannis & Rosie
General Manager: James Walker-Smith
Group Business Director: Andrew Thistlethwaite
Business Director: Cameron Dobbelsteyn
Senior Business Manager: Rosie Dingle
Senior Strategy Director: Dhiv Pillai
Executive Producer: Justine Dooner
Senior Integrated Producer: Laura Midalia
Finished Artist: Julie Gunner
Retoucher: Jon Cucinotta & Demi Mackrill
Editors (web assets): Joe Giuffrida & Ed Coyle
PR: Herd MSL
Production Company: Good Oil
Director: Renée Mao
Executive Producer: Sam Long
Head of Production: Chana McLallen
Producer: Ellie Craven
DOP: Jani Hakli
Post House: The Editors
Editor: Grace O’Connell
Post Producer: Isabella Key
VXF Operator: Matt Edwards
Music & Sound: Massive Music
OOH Photography: Milos Mlynarik
Boot Photography & Motion: Nick Bowers @ Photoplay
