There is no hiding on social media, and the Saskatchewan Roughriders now find themselves in a messy situation.
Backlash against the CFL team has come after an email was sent to fans with a new round of advertising.
The ad includes phrases like “Proficient in girl math it’s basically free,” “Literally the best excuse for cute matching outfits” and “Take the stairs. Earn the seltzers.”
The ad uses inspiration from a popular social media trend on Tik Tok called “girl math.” The trend and hashtag is used when people explain mental accounting decisions that aren’t always mathematically sound.
Included in the email are other phrases aimed at women.
“With Season Tickets in Pil Country you can be on the best patio in the province for every home game this season (Where my Labour Day girlies at?) for just $306 +tax! Cute price, right?” the ad reads.
“Missing this is for sure worse than when they run out of Cinnamon Dolce Sprinkles!”
For many fans online, the ads have completely missed the mark.
“This can’t be real – can’t wait to show my two young girls how much the riders value them for… being bad at math and dieting? So bad,” one fan said online in response to the ad.
“2024 will be the first year in decades that I don’t hold season tickets,” another fan said online. “It breaks my heart but I just can’t justify Rider Store merchandise or Mosaic Stadium game day costs any longer. THAT is Girl Math!”
Regina recently went through a similar issue, when the Regina Exhibition Association Limited (REAL) promoted an “Experience Regina” tourism campaign that used what many considered sexist slogans such as “Show us your Regina” and “The city that rhymes with fun.”
Roughriders director of marketing Jacqueline Hurlbert said the ad campaign “missed the mark,” and that members of the fan base who received the ad were later sent an email “unequivocally apologizing for it.”
“The Roughriders’ staff is made up of 50 per cent women, and the ‘girl math’ email was imagined, developed and deployed by women within our marketing team, but we heard from our female fans that this message did not resonate with them,” Hulbert said. “We will use this as a learning opportunity to be better in the future.”
“We value contributions from women in our fan base, in football, and in our community and thank them for their guidance and feedback.”