Downy Fabric Softener “Kicks-Off” Its First Super Bowl Sunday

Procter and Gamble’s ‘Downy Unstopables’ will be featured in the fabric softener brand’s very first advertisement on Super Bowl Sunday, airing during the pre-game show Sunday, February 5th between 5:30 pm and 6:00 pm on NBC. Downy is choosing to shake up Super Bowl Sunday by recapturing the magic of the past and freshening up one of the game’s most memorable commercials– Coca Cola’s 1980 advertisement featuring the legendary “Mean” Joe Greene of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Downy will also be entertaining viewers during the game by launching a special “Touch Downy” giveaway, which will capitalize on the excitement that ensues when a team scores a touchdown. Downy will be giving away surprises on the brand’s Twitter account every time either team takes it into the end zone for a touchdown.

This time around Greene joins feisty actress and author Amy Sedaris, who has been featured in previous commercials for the product, to bring a more playful feel to the ad. In the spot, Amy hands him a bottle of Downy Unstopables with a childlike innocence, similar to the boy originally paired with Joe 33 years ago. Her offer is meant to be a fresh solution after a long game, when Downy Unstopables, an in-wash scent booster that contains four times the perfume ingredients as regular Downy liquid fabric softener, can really come in handy.

“When Downy approached me about recreating Coca Cola’s Super Bowl commercial from 1980, it didn’t take much to convince me,” said Joe Greene. “I loved the idea of allowing fans to re-live such a classic television moment in a completely new and entertaining way.”

The exciting ad will be pre-seeded through iMedia, as well as a re-branding of the YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/downy) featuring Joe Greene. Consumers can participate in the “Touch Downy” giveaway on the Downy Twitter page (http://www.twitter.com/downy) using the hashtag #TouchDowny. Each time a team scores a touchdown, consumers who tweet the hashtag at the Downy Twitter account (@Downy) will receive Downy products and Unstopable Fan packages.