Ex Qantas marketer Lewis Pullen to join NRL as head of marketing
Lewis Pullen
Former Qantas marketing director Lewis Pullen is to join the National Rugby League as its new head of marketing.
Pullen left his role at Qantas in May with his duties being taken up by corporate affairs boss Olivia Wirth.
In a statement, this morning, Pullen said: “Rugby League is a great game,” he said today. “As a passionate fan of, and active participator in sport, I feel very privileged to have this opportunity to work with such a great brand.”
“Marketing and business strategies start with the customer and in Rugby League that begins with understanding the needs of the fans.
Lewis’s appointment will see him work with NRL head of commercial Paul Kind and the marketing teams at all levels of the game.
“We have been committed to building a team that can grow the game significantly in the years ahead,” NRL CEO Dave Smith said.
Tough gig. As an NRL nut I’d have to agree that the game’s been out-marketed by AFL and football (soccer.) Worse, it’s biggest issues are in its heartland – western Sydney. Parramatta played Penrith recently and got a crowd not much more than 9,000. That’s a huge problem right there…
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Add to that the fact they can’t market it as a ‘family game’ because the players are the games own worst enemy, the consistent negative press, inconsistent refereeing / changing the rules halfway through the season and it not being available live on free-to-air TV… You can see why AFL is making huge inroads in this state.
They even chose Western Sydney to start a new team rather than somewhere that follows AFL fervently, ie Darwin or Hobart.
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Marketing a bunch of drunken thugs with tattoos? Good luck Lewis.
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