Two television advertisements for sports drink Powerade have been taken off-air after complaints from the public.
The adverts showed rugby star Israel Dagg and Steven Adams getting injured, before drinking Powerade and returning to their respective games and scoring points.
In a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), it was claimed "the advertisements imply the sports drink, Powerade, would be good for sports injuries".
"All follow a very deliberate and consistent thread, and include the sports stars coming back from injury," the complainant argued. "The voiceover doesn't talk about the injury, but the whole narrative is designed to imply that it - the sports drink - helps in such a scenario."
They decided to lay a complaint after asking children what they thought the ads meant, and all responded that Powerade would heal injuries.
"When I explained that it does not do this, they were outraged and asked if that was not 'against the law'."
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Manufacturer Coca Cola argued the adverts were clear that Powerade "replaces four electrolytes lost in sweat", and did not think they suggested the drink could help athletes recover from injury.
"Rather, the audiences would appreciate that the sports injuries merely provide background for the nature and extent of the work put in by the featured athletes."
There were three adverts in the initial complaint. One featured swimmer Sophie Pascoe, who was not shown to be injured. This advert was deemed okay by the ASA board.
The other two, featuring Dagg and Adams, were deemed misleading. They have since been taken off-air.
A previous complaint about a different Powerade advert starring Adams, claiming he was "over-hydrating", was thrown out.
Newshub.
