Glen’s Vodka consumers ‘Sub in to Win’ in football-inspired promo

Glen’s Vodka has launched a new Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL)-inspired on-pack promotion.

The ‘Sub in to Win’ promotion gives consumers the chance to put their football skills to the test to win big, from weekly cash prizes to exclusive Glen’s merchandise.

As the Official Spirit of the SPFL, Glen’s Vodka has put a modern spin on the much-loved classic ‘spot the ball’ competition in this new promotion. Supported by out of home and digital advertising worth almost half a million pounds, the campaign brings the true spirit of Scottish football to life with a light-hearted look at the highlights and gaffes of the game using action shots caught on pitch-side cameras.

“The reason Scottish football resonates so well with the Glen’s brand, and our consumers, is its inclusive nature – from taking to social media to celebrate your Premiership club’s results, to cheering on the grassroots talent in the lower divisions from the sidelines,” Colin Matthews, chief executive of Glen’s Vodka owner Loch Lomond Group, said.

“And all football fans want to be part of it. That’s why we’re giving our consumers a chance to play in their own league this season and rewarding them with a piece of the game – whether it’s a signed shirt from their club, or a cash prize for topping the leaderboard.”

Starting the journey in-store with a modified label design and branded POS displays, the off-trade promotion transcends the traditional ‘buy to win’ mechanic with consumers taking the game online – with no purchase necessary - to compete for a place on the real-time leaderboard, in line with its popular SPFL partnership. The promotion will also be supported on-trade with scan-to-play bar mats and posters allowing the public to take part.

“The ‘Sub in to Win’ campaign recognises the breadth of Britain’s best-loved game and gives a cheeky nod to the mixture of skill and chance involved. We’ll leave it up to the fans to debate which factor will have them topping the league, but either way, the fun, competitive nature of the promotion will have consumers coming back each week for their ‘game day’,” Matthews added.

The special label design can be found on Glen’s Original Vodka and Glen’s Platinum 1-litre bottles, which will be available across all UK stockists, including Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons and Asda, as well as throughout the convenience sector.

The limited-edition bottles are set to be on the shelves until June.

The ’Sub in to Win’ promotion is the latest in a series of initiatives from the brand which has seen it thrive, growing by 8 per cent moving annual total (MAT) volume and outperforming the vodka category by 16 percentage points (Nielsen, Feb 23). It follows the highly successful 2022 ‘Paid Like a Pro’ on-pack which saw premier results for the brand with more than 40,000 entries.

As Glen’s first ever on-pack promotion, the team has tweaked the mechanic this year to improve trade execution and add an extra layer of gamification to further connect with consumers.

Shoppers will be able to scan the QR code directly from the bottle and supporting promotional material to access the dedicated Glen’s ‘Sub in to Win’ microsite, where they’ll be invited to compete in a series of spot the ball challenges.

The promotion will see 10 weekly cash prizes of £1,000 to top the Glen’s leaderboard, with runners up receiving exclusive vintage-style Glen’s football shirts. Participants will also be drawn at random to win signed SPFL merchandise from all 42 teams in the final weeks of the promotion, with over 230 prizes up for grabs.