For its third instalment of the ‘Kick of Destiny’ Super Bowl ad campaign, FanDuel opted for a new tagline: ‘May the Best Manning Win.’
And while it turned out to be Eli who beat brother Peyton Manning in the promotional field-goal kicking contest, Sunday’s real winner proved to be the sportsbook itself, which enjoyed a 19-percent increase in bets from Year 2 of the campaign.
The Kick of Destiny ads began running weeks earlier and centered on the farcical premise that Eli had once dreamed of becoming a place kicker rather than following his father Archie and older brother Peyton under center. And to up the stakes for Eli, his brotherly rival and long-time antagonist was also asked to compete.
Customers could pick one of the two Super Bowl-winning Manning brothers to successfully kick a 25-yard field goal outside the Superdome on Sunday, with lucky winners getting their share of $10 million in bonus bets with the online sports book.
Unlike the first two campaigns, both of which culminated with live ads, this year’s contest was moved to Fox’s Super Bowl LIX pregame show and that footage was later re-edited into an in-game spot for FanDuel.
The results were noticeable. Nearly three million active users bet on Super Bowl LIX, peaking at around 70,000 bets per minute. And with Eli picking up more than half of the 2 million Kick of Destiny wagers, over one million FanDuel customers received $10 in bonus bets, according to the sportsbook.
Eli Manning celebrates his Kick of Destiny victory with a solemn moment alongside the trophy
This year’s Kick of Destiny was moved from a live ad into Fox’s Super Bowl pregame show
This year’s ad ended with some pre-recorded footage of Peyton pulling Eli on a float in NoLa
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Overall, gamblers appeared to do well on Sunday. Most correctly took the 48.5-point over, and one customer wagered $10 to win a $7,612.63 payout on an eight-leg parlay.
As for the kicking contest, neither Peyton nor Eli managed to connect on their first attempt. Peyton pulled his attempt wide left, while Eli’s only managed to travel about 10 yards or so before landing wide right.
‘Just follow through, Eli,’ a trash-talking Peyton could be heard during his younger brother’s approach.
Legendary тιԍнт end Rob Gronkowski was on hand after failing to make the first two Kick of Destiny attempts, as was the Mannings’ oldest brother Cooper, who filled the role of sideline reporter.
‘Was that worse than one of yours?’ Cooper asked Gronkowski of Eli’s first attempt.
‘Way worse,’ Gronkowski responded.
From there Eli and Peyton were allowed to move five yards closer, which was more than enough for the Mannings to have a chance.
Peyton had more than enough leg on his second attempt, but the ball slammed into the right upright before falling to the turf.
‘The Sheriff goes doink!’ Cooper exclaimed, using his brother Peyton’s nickname.
Eli then ended the brief compeтιтion by easily making his 20-yard attempt.
‘This feels unbelievable,’ Eli told Cooper afterwards. ‘I’ve been dreaming of this moment. I’ve just been grinding, been working so hard. Finally, to be a kicker just feels right.’
FanDuel and ad agency Wieden + Kennedy New York then quickly spliced the live compeтιтion with some pre-recorded clips for an in-game ad that played later in the broadcast.
That commercial featured Eli being pulled on a Mardi Gras-style float down Bourbon Street by his older brother, Peyton.
‘Did I really want to be a kicker?’ Eli asked himself as the commercial’s narrator. ‘It doesn’t matter. What’s most important today is that I beat my big brother, live, on national TV.
‘Sorry Peyton, but the best Manning won,’ Eli concluded. ‘Right, dad?’
