O2 Matchday was conceived, designed and built in six weeks – a collaboration between our agency, O2 and O2 Labs. The first version of the app was launched during the 6 Nations tournament in February 2013 and an updated version was released ahead of the Autumn Internationals in November 2013.

O2 Matchday allowed rugby fans to hear the referee at home, in the pub or even on the move for the first time ever, all via Ref!Link. The app also included exclusive behind-the-scenes content, interviews with the players and coaches, in-game highlights and a live stream of the post-match press conference.

Last spring we re-launched it properly with new features, like tablet compatibility and video content, but the main thing was that the live referee was working and it was the main feature we used to promote the app in all our advertising.

The moment our ad campaign launched, we generated significant media coverage as journalists started to recognise its value:

- 23% awareness of O2 Matchday after the campaign

- Over 20 PR articles and stories in relevant high-profile media, including

o The Rugby Network

o Telegraph Online

o T3

o The Guardian online

o Radio Five Live

o Daily Star (highlighted as App of the Week)

- 21% recall of the print ad (tested by The Telegraph)

- Over 10 million reach in social media (Facebook and Twitter)

This helped to drive download volumes and engagement:

- 58,000 downloads of O2 Matchday (target 30,000)

- Average dwell-time of 5m48s

- #1 free sports app in Apple’s App Store for two consecutive weeks during the 6 Nations