“The Captain” just got sacked by the National Football League.
Last Sunday during the third quarter of the Cowboys v. Eagles game, Eagles tight end Brent Celek caught an 11-yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb. He then put his hands on his hips, and raised his right leg, mimicking a pose similar to the pirate on Captain Morgan’s label. It’s also the pose made by actors in the brand’s commercials.
According to Yahoo! Sports, the move was banned this week after the league learned of a wider campaign meant to get players to repeatedly strike the pose during NFL games.
“A company can’t pay a player to somehow promote it’s product on the field,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told Yahoo! Sports this week. Therein lies the difficulty. The NFL isn’t getting their cut and that ain’t gonna play.
Here are more pics of Celek’s pose.
An athlete is the most influential endorsement a company can have. It’s no wonder that Captain Morgan capitalized on this fact during a game of two popular teams.
I can’t say I think this is entirely corrupt. I mean companies pay these athletes to drink their products, weard their clothes and even verbally endorse their campaigns on the streets. Why stop when they get on the football field? In an innovative field such as advertising, there is always a new form creating a stir. It is nearly impossible to regulate completely.
I agree that the teams and NFL organization should benefit in some way from these endorsements. But I am not entirely against them either.