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The Army Bet $11M on The Rock and UFL Ginning Up Enlistments. It May Have Actually Hurt Recruiting Efforts
www.military.com ^ | JULY 30, 2024 | Steve Beynon

Posted on 07/31/2024 6:01:01 AM PDT by Red Badger

The Army is seemingly having buyer's remorse after an $11 million marketing deal with the United Football League and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.

The high-dollar, high-profile deal likely didn't lead to a single new Army recruit and may possibly have had a negative impact on finding new enlistments, internal documents and emails reviewed by Military.com show. The service may even seek to get some of its money back.

The Army inked the deal earlier this year with the UFL, the upstart minor league alternative to the NFL that had an inaugural season from March through June with a disappointing debut. More importantly, the deal included Johnson, a global superstar and owner of the league, who was supposed to serve as a pseudo brand ambassador for the Army -- though the service said he did not fulfill his end of the bargain to publish a specific number of service-related posts on his social media accounts.

The news comes as the Army is in the midst of a historic recruiting crisis that has been partially worsened by the service struggling to navigate modern marketing trends. Much of its efforts are still geared toward funneling money into cable TV-style ads and marketing deals with other traditional television broadcasts, such as sports, even as Gen Z's media diet has left most of those old-school mediums behind.

The UFL deal was so catastrophic, it led to a projected loss of 38 enlistments, an internal review of the plan shows. Army planners use various metrics to judge whether time and money could be better spent in other efforts, and the effort and resources spent on the UFL were seen by the service as a net negative for recruiting.

(Excerpt) Read more at military.com ...


TOPICS: History; Military/Veterans; Sports; TV/Movies
KEYWORDS:
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1 posted on 07/31/2024 6:01:01 AM PDT by Red Badger
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To: Red Badger

Until the military is purged of marxists, trannies and other assorted freaks, few will want to join and then ones that do are often the wrong type. I feel sorry for those that join out of patriotism only to find themselves in the middle of a freak show.


2 posted on 07/31/2024 6:03:20 AM PDT by Dutch Boy (The only thing worse than having something taken from you is to have it returned broken. )
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To: Red Badger

Doo-wayne Johnson, riding the Democrat Party clown car with Biden and Big Gulp.


3 posted on 07/31/2024 6:03:31 AM PDT by kiryandil (FR Democrat Party operatives! Rally in defense of your Colombian cartel stooge Merchan!)
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To: Red Badger

How about getting rid of the wokeness and advertising that?

Naaaaaaaah. You superior people know better, don’cha?


4 posted on 07/31/2024 6:04:01 AM PDT by HombreSecreto (The life of a repo man is always intense)
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To: Red Badger

5 posted on 07/31/2024 6:04:12 AM PDT by Tom Tetroxide
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To: Dutch Boy

Couldn’t get a real American huh? Someone that loves this country and all that other BS?


6 posted on 07/31/2024 6:05:38 AM PDT by albie
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To: Red Badger
It's not about football


7 posted on 07/31/2024 6:06:35 AM PDT by JonPreston ( ✌ ☮️ )
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To: Red Badger
"Sir, I'm submitting my separation paperwork."

~"Because...."

"I saw the recruiting ads from that actor Doowayne Johnson and it's clear to me that I need to get out of here."

8 posted on 07/31/2024 6:08:15 AM PDT by T.B. Yoits
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To: JonPreston

is that the infamous dog faced pony soldier?


9 posted on 07/31/2024 6:09:02 AM PDT by patriot torch (..)
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To: Red Badger
From the article: ...it led to a projected loss of 38 enlistments...

Imagine how much worse it would have been if they didn't run the advertising program.

10 posted on 07/31/2024 6:09:21 AM PDT by T.B. Yoits
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To: JonPreston

No wonder we called Army guys ‘doggies’.......................


11 posted on 07/31/2024 6:09:47 AM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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To: Red Badger
There's another doozy in the article related to Noosecar:

"One senior Army marketing official, in an interview with Military.com, said the deal echoed the National Guard's $88 million NASCAR sponsorship that reportedly didn't lead to a single new soldier joining the ranks."

...if they had only spent $188 million, yeah, that would have succeeded.

12 posted on 07/31/2024 6:12:08 AM PDT by T.B. Yoits
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To: Red Badger

Hey Army; Go woke, go broke.


13 posted on 07/31/2024 6:12:58 AM PDT by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn...)
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To: Red Badger

Standing armies are dangerous to civilians. I am ok with our thug run woke standing army dying on the vine. It is all good.


14 posted on 07/31/2024 6:16:00 AM PDT by central_va (I won't be reconstructed and I do not give a damn...)
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To: Dutch Boy

“Until the military is purged of marxists, trannies and other assorted freaks, few will want to join and then ones that do are often the wrong type. I feel sorry for those that join out of patriotism only to find themselves in the middle of a freak show.”

Let’s not forget that the DemocRATz will abandon our military overseas without remorse if it can earn them a vote. The left is our country’s WORST enemy, and we had better start treating them as such. Treat them like the enemy and make them afraid. Woke has no place in a real military.


15 posted on 07/31/2024 6:16:31 AM PDT by Da Coyote
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To: central_va

Maybe they should hire the guy that did that Olympics show. That ought to get the recruiters busy.....................


16 posted on 07/31/2024 6:17:57 AM PDT by Red Badger (Homeless veterans camp in the streets while illegals are put up in 5 Star hotels....................)
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To: Dutch Boy

You’re right about the freak show. But that’s only half the problem. A young person joins the army to help defend the country, only to end up on a hill in the middle of some hell-hole country.

Get rid of the freak show. And get rid of the constant foreign adventures. Only then would I advise a young person to consider joining the army.


17 posted on 07/31/2024 6:20:11 AM PDT by Leaning Right (The steal is real.)
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To: central_va

> Standing armies are dangerous to civilians. <

True that. Awhile back another Freeper made an interesting comment. He said that the president traditionally controlled the navy. So if he wanted the navy to fight pirates, he just ordered it.

But any use of the army required strict congressional approval. That part is now gone. If the president wants to commit the army, he just does it. In response, Congress might whine a little. But that’s it.

Welcome to the imperial presidency (obviously a very bad thing).


18 posted on 07/31/2024 6:27:58 AM PDT by Leaning Right (The steal is real.)
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To: HombreSecreto

And stop trying to convince men that women belong in combat units.


19 posted on 07/31/2024 6:29:56 AM PDT by Bigg Red (Trump will be sworn in under a shower of confetti made from the tattered remains of the Rat Party.)
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To: Red Badger

Be All You Can Be and we won’t make you wear a dress and high-heels


20 posted on 07/31/2024 6:33:12 AM PDT by butlerweave
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