Marketing Briefs

Rafa Nadal, the world’s number one ranked tennis player will now, along with soccer greats, David Beckham and Christiano Ronoldo, bear his bottom for Armani briefs, which is either the dumbest advertising scheme Armani has ever come up with or the cleverest.

For those of you who are not tennis aficionados, Nadal has a habit of picking his “butt” routinely during play; usually just before serving or being served.
Some refer to this as a simple habit; a tic perhaps; a superstition of sorts; a wedgie-a tucker between his underwear and buttocks. So Armani will try and erase this image from our minds and instead replace it with a buffed up Rafa in briefs. Fitting? And by fitting I do not mean the briefs.
I mean is it fitting for someone to promote the very product that poses the problem?
That’s like air traffic controllers endorsing sleep aids. “Trouble falling asleep? Try what the air traffic controllers in many of the busiest airports in the U.S. recommend for a guaranteed good night’s sleep, whether you’re on the job or not.” Like we didn`t have enough to worry about flying about in air planes. Now added to our fear of flying and falling out of the sky there`s the fear of the unwelcomed in-flight sun roof happening; water landings and tarmac taxiing accidents. Not to worry. A fatigue expert has been called in to deal with the dozy controllers. What constitutes a fatigue expert anyway? An educated narcoleptic? I digress.

I am not opposed to viewing Mr. Nadal in his bikini briefs. Au contraire. But where do we draw the line on the marketing faux pas. Why not get Mel Gibson to promote anger management therapy; hockey players to present public service announcements on the prevention of violence in the workplace; politicians to endorse bilingualism (since they already talk out of both sides of their mouths); Charlie Sheen could replace the fried egg. Remember that ad? "This is your brain. This is your brain on drugs? Any questions?