JD Sports ‘Dangerous’ Riding Sportswear Adverts Banned
The adverts depicted people riding quads and off-road bikes, all while wearing casual sportswear and Nike trainers
A JD Sports Ad campaign that depicted what many motorcycle and safety groups branded as ‘dangerous’ riding have been ordered to be not used again.
We first reported on the adverts when they began appearing on social media in March this year. They depicted riders on quad bikes performing donuts and others on Yamaha motocross machines pulling wheelies, skids and stoppies. Some of the riding took place in a warehouse, and some showed bikes and quads riding in a group on what could be believed to be a public road.
The adverts received widespread condemnation from motorcycle and safety groups, riders and the motorcycle press as a whole, and it seems as though the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) also took a very dim view of the campaign. In particular, there were four adverts under scrutiny: Advert A was a cover photo of the JD Sports Facebook page, Advert B was a Facebook reel, Advert C was a paid-for Facebook ad, and Advert D was a poster.
The BusinessDesk website reports that more than 60 complaints were made to the ASA, including one from the British Motorcyclists Federation. It goes on to claim that complaints highlighted that adverts A, B and D included illegal and irresponsible road usage.
The ASA took a similar view of the campaign and has ordered that adverts A, B, and C must now not be shown in their current form, meaning a chunk of the money paid to create the campaign is effectively down the drain. The ASA has also ordered JD Sports to ensure that any future advertising campaigns “did not condone or encourage unsafe driving practices”.
We are chalking this one up as a win for common sense.
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Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
