Drinks · Case study
How Carling Black Label turned 30 Varsity Cup matches into 12 weeks of play in 100 student venues.
From the TV in the bar to a case of beer at the liquor store: Brand Box screens in 100 venues near campus, a QR code on every surface, a Score Predictor site with a rugby kicking game, vouchers and cash prizes, and promoters at 92 outlets. 11,444 people signed up, with no online media spend.
- Venue screens
- Predict the score
- Rugby kicking game
- Vouchers and cash prizes
- Promoter app
- Registrations
- 11,444
- Kicks in the game
- 12,713
- Survey responses
- 27,488
- Venues with screens
- 100
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Not for persons under the age of 18. Enjoy responsibly.
Chapter 1 of 9
The brief
Carling Black Label's sponsorship of the Varsity Cup gave the brand a powerful sports platform. The challenge was turning match-day excitement into sustained, measurable engagement that drove students into the bar and the liquor store, and delivered genuine insight.
A TV spot or stadium banner is fleeting. The brief demanded something that would keep fans taking part across the whole tournament, and work for three audiences at once: rugby fans who wanted to predict, play and compete; venues and outlets that needed students through the door; and promoters across 92 outlets who needed to be booked, tracked and managed.
The brand's own goal for the year was clear: recruit new, younger drinkers aged 18 to 24 by building a contemporary image. Success would be measured in two ways: the share of 18 to 24 year olds who had drunk it in the past four weeks, and the brand's power with that age group.
“We needed a platform that kept fans coming back for every single Varsity Cup match — not just the final. Something that made Black Label feel like it was part of the rugby conversation, not just a sponsor.”
- Competition
- 17 February to 5 May 2025
- Matches
- All 30 FNB Varsity Cup matches
- Screens
- 128 Brand Box devices in 100 venues
- Reach
- 9 provinces, varsity towns near campus
- Promoters
- 92 outlets, 305 shifts
- Who could play
- South African residents aged 18 and over
The idea
Champions deserve champion beer.
The campaign line ran on every surface, from the bar TV to the promoter's lanyard. Behind it, one rule for the whole platform: always keep the customer winning. A Score Predictor site (“When they score, you score”) gave students a reason to come back for every match, with R250,000 in vouchers and cash prizes to win.
- Win new customers at the point of purchase
- Bring back lapsed ones, and keep them coming
- Drive extra sales in the bar and the liquor store
- Build first-party data, insight and analytics
- Raise visibility where students gather
- Let the brand own its access to its audience
Chapter 2 of 9
On the screens, during live sport
128 Brand Box devices put Carling Black Label on the TVs in 100 student venues close to campus, during the sport the room was already watching. The devices also gathered audience data directly, with no middlemen.
- 0'Full screen
- 15'L-shape
- 30'Bottom scroller
- 45'L-shape
- 60'Bottom scroller
Four moments an hour
- Two L-shaped squeeze backs and two bottom scrollers, each 15 seconds long.
- On the hour, and at 15, 30 and 45 minutes past, timed to peak moments in the game so the call to action is remembered.
- One message: scan the code, register, get R25 off a Carling Black Label draught on Mondays, and win your share of R250,000.
Five ways in
Every surface in the venue carried the same QR code, so a student could join from wherever they were sitting. They could also go straight to the site.
The TVThe squeeze back during live sport. 
Menu insertOn the table, with the code to scan. 
Wobblers and stickersAt the bar and on the fridges. 
The promoter's lanyardScan and register on the spot.
Posters and tent cards (the fifth way in) carried the code too, alongside the Monday special.
Mondays, in every university's colours
Eight posters, one per campus, sold the Monday special: a Carling Black Label 500 ml draught for R25 at participating bars, from 14:00 to 22:00.
Chapter 3 of 9
The student's journey, start to finish
From scanning the code at the bar to a case of beer and a cash prize: eleven steps, all in the phone's browser, with no app to download.
Eleven steps
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Scan the codeOn the TV, a menu insert, a poster, a sticker or a promoter's lanyard. The Score Predictor site opens: when they score, you score.
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RegisterName, date of birth, email and cell number, or one tap with Google.
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Choose and agreeOpt in to hear from SAB, accept the terms, then verify the email and cell number to unlock the game.
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Buy two draughts, spin the wheelBuy Carling Black Label draughts to share, show the promoter your phone, and spin to win a cap, beanie, T-shirt or vest on the spot.
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Vote in the pollsQuick votes tied to match-day moments, like which team you support.
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Predict the scoreCall the winner and the score before each of the 30 matches; predictions close at kick-off.
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Check in at a venueCheck in at a participating bar, with the biggest reward on Mondays, or at the stadium on match day.
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Answer the weekly survey, invite friendsEach survey and each friend who verifies adds points and tokens.
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Spend tokens on the kickEach kick costs 50 tokens. Read the wind, swipe, and put it between the posts to win an R50 or R100 voucher off a case of Carling Black Label.
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Score a voucher, redeem in storeA good kick pops up “Congratulations! You scored” an R50 or R100 voucher off a case. Generate it, then say “Mobile Voucher” at the liquor store till.
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Climb the leaderboardEvery action adds points. The three players with the most points when the competition closes on 5 May 2025 win R20,000, R10,000 and R5,000.
Chapter 4 of 9
Kick the Polls, and what you could win
A real skill game, not a tap: players read a changing wind speed, then swipe to set the power and direction of the kick. 12,713 kicks were taken. You never lose points, only the 50 tokens a kick costs, and you can play as often as your tokens allow.
1. Line it upVerify your email and cell to play. 
2. KickRead the wind, swipe up. A real play, filmed on a phone. 
3. Score a voucherR50 or R100 off a case. 
4. Redeem in storeSay “Mobile Voucher” at the till.
R250,000 in prizes
-
Instant, in the bar
Spin to win
Buy Carling Black Label draughts, show the promoter your logged-in phone, and spin the wheel for a cap, beanie, T-shirt or hooded vest.
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From the game
R50 and R100
Vouchers off a case of Carling Black Label: 3,044 won (900 at R100 and 2,144 at R50), redeemable at Shoprite LiquorShop, Checkers LiquorShop, Pick n Pay Liquor and Boxer Liquors.
Choose your store once; it can't be changed.
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The leaderboard
R20,000 · R10,000 · R5,000
Cash for the three players with the most points when the competition closed on 5 May 2025, paid by EFT. Ties were settled by a random draw.
Chapter 5 of 9
Every mechanic, in detail
Six ways to earn points and tokens, each feeding the leaderboard and the data. Points were for ranking; tokens were for playing.
Predict the score5,635
Before each of the 30 FNB Varsity Cup matches, fans called the winner and the score. Prediction windows opened before each fixture and closed at kick-off, creating a natural sense of urgency and a weekly rhythm that brought people back for every round.
5,635 predictions, about 188 a match: 3,680 picked the winner, 1,950 a close score and 5 the exact score. The most-predicted match was UP-Tuks against NWU Eagles, with 788.
Check-ins1,577
Fans checked in at participating bars from 14:00 to 22:00, with the biggest reward on Mondays, the student night, and a weekly check-in at the stadium on match day. Check-ins opened an hour before and closed an hour after.
1,577 unique check-ins. Monday was by far the busiest day, and most came between 15:00 and 17:00. Cape Town led with 465, then Gauteng with 232 and Gqeberha with 121.
Weekly surveys27,488
Ten surveys with 42 questions, one a week, each earning points and tokens: “Your honest feedback helps us create even more epic experiences.” 27,488 surveys were completed and 111,071 questions answered, peaking at 4,260 in week 4. The topics, week by week:
- Drinking occasions and consumption
- Where people buy, and from which retailer
- Social media and promotions
- Appetite for games, and the features people enjoyed most
- Brand heritage and merchandise
- Packaging and pack sizes
- Brand familiarity and what drives choice
- Game-day rituals
- After the game: music and food pairings
- Content creators and brand ambassadors
Polls5,614
Quick-vote polls tied to match-day moments, with the results shared back to fans. The team poll drew 5,614 votes, and Wits supporters made up 42.9% of them, more than the next three teams together.
Invite a friend3,571
Both the inviter and the friend earned points and tokens once the friend verified. 3,571 verified invites came from 1,059 people: most sent between one and five, and four super-sharers sent 442 between them. Growth came from peer recommendation, not paid media.
Weekly emails18,297
Nine emails kept the season moving: last round's results, the next fixtures with kick-off times and venues, “set your predictions”, double points and tokens offers, the Monday R25 special, and how many vouchers were still up for grabs. Sends grew from 5,778 to 10,595 as the base grew, with 18,297 reads in total.
What the campaign learned
Chapter 6 of 9
Promoters on the ground, and the Promoter+ app
Promoters at 92 outlets ran 305 shifts and brought in 1,189 registrations. They wore the code on a lanyard, ran the spin the wheel, and clocked in and out on the Promoter+ app, which gave the brand a live view of every shift.
The app confirmed each promoter's arrival time and location by geo-location, checked dress code and promotional materials, tracked merchandise stock and captured check-out at the end of a shift. Partway through the season it began verifying people as they registered, which sharply increased verified sign-ups.
Its dashboard gave the brand live shift reports, attendance and verified registrations, with QA checks, customer and store profiling, stock counts, end-of-shift summaries, leaderboards, targets and scheduled against actual times.
One finding shaped the next season: promoter visits on Tuesdays from 19:00 were linked to higher registration rates.
- Shifts live
- Attendance
- Verified registrations
- Stock checks
Shift checklist
- Check-inGeo-located
- Dress codePassed
- Promotional materialsOn site
- Merchandise stockCounted
- Check-outEnd of shift
Registrations by day
Best slotTuesdays from 19:00
Chapter 7 of 9
The results
11,444 sign-ups. 27,488 surveys. No online media spend.
Twelve weeks of steady, weekly engagement, grown through the venue screens, the promoters and friends inviting friends. Every voucher redeemed was a case of Carling Black Label sold.
Platform
11,444
Registrations
With no online media spend
9,973
Unique logins
13,886 logins in total
3,571
Verified invites
From 1,059 people who invited friends
1,107,320
Points earned
All users combined
Engagement
Vouchers redeemed
Won in the Kick the Polls game
69.9%
2,129 of the 3,044 vouchers won were redeemed at liquor stores: 900 R100 and 2,144 R50 vouchers were won.
Promoters
92
Outlets with promoters
305
Promoter shifts
1,189
Registrations brought in by promoters
Registrations brought in by promoters
1,189 at 92 outlets
- Verified 300
- Unverified 889
Screens
2,085,591
Total potential views
Over 12 weeks in 100 venues
254,560
Unique reach
8.2
Average frequency
The campaign site, 16 March to 5 May 2025
31,678
Users
46,911
Sessions
4 min 25 s
Average session
172,070
Page views
9,973 people logged in 13,886 times, and 3,571 verified invites show how much of the audience came from peer recommendation rather than paid media. The kicking game was the standout: 12,713 kicks, 3,044 vouchers won and 2,129 redeemed in liquor stores.
Reach: the screens created 2,085,591 potential views, an estimate of how many people could see the advertising in a venue. Unique reach, 254,560, is the number of people who had the chance to see it at least once; frequency, 8.2, is how many times each of them saw it on average. Audiences grew from 17:00 to 21:00 and peaked at 19:00, after lectures and work. Saturday was the busiest day, then Friday and Monday, the student night.
“The depth of engagement across the full 3 months was exactly what we needed. The predict-the-score and rugby game kept fans coming back for every match — and the voucher redemptions told us the rewards were landing where it mattered: in-store.”
Chapter 8 of 9
Who took part
Three in four registrations came from the 18 to 34 target. Half were 25 to 34, a little over half of those who gave their sex were women, and Gauteng led the provinces.
11,444
Registered users
With no online media spend
73%
Target consumer hit rate
Registrations aged 18 to 34
62.4%
Verified their email
6,427 people
60.5%
Verified their cell number
6,262 people
Sex
Of those who gave their sex
- Women 52.6% (5,426)
- Men 47.2% (4,885)
- Not shown 0.2%
Chapter 9 of 9
What's next
The season closed with a review of what to stop, start and continue, for the students' platform and for the promoters.
Stop
- Nothing on the consumer platform
- Launching promoter tools partway through a campaign
Start
- A budget for paid online media to boost visibility and sign-ups
- Till-slip or receipt uploads as proof of purchase, to earn points and measure sales
- A gamified refer-a-friend, and an always-on rewards programme instead of a short burst
- Live scores, commentary and news, and promoters in the stadiums on match day
- Briefing promoters before launch, with targets, incentives and photo uploads in the app
- A digital prize system in place of physical spin wheels, linking every prize to a person
Continue
- Weekly surveys for first-party data and product sentiment
- Outlet check-ins to drive foot traffic, linked to in-store purchases
- Score predictions, with live updates and bonuses
- The Promoter+ app for a live, bird's-eye view of activity on the ground
- Promoter visits on Tuesdays from 19:00
Always keep the customer winning.
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