Our brief was to continue EE’s mission to make the online world a safer space. Following campaigns on homophobic hate and sexist hate, this brief was focussed on spotlighting how online hate is causing young women to drop out of sport.

44% of UK teenage girls personally experience sport-related hate online. Causing 121 young women to stop playing sport across the country. Every single day.

The first objective was to raise awareness and make people realise that this is happening. But there was also a bigger second objective: create a swell of support and secure media coverage, even uproar, so that UK Government policy makers and online regulators were forced to acknowledge it. And, more importantly, do something about it. Only then would the campaign be a true success.

Rather than a traditional campaign, we knew we had to do something that caught the nation’s attention. And therefore, the policy makers’ attention.

Ellen White is England Women’s greatest ever goalscorer. Thousands, if not millions, of young women in the UK look up to her. So we released her autobiography.

Except this was no ordinary autobiography. Because it stopped. At the exact age girls all over the UK give up sport due to online hate.

This story didn't end in glory. Instead, the pages become harder to read and fade to black. Using special print techniques to make them disappear, Ellen’s greatest achievements are thrown into darkness. Delivering our shocking statistics and message in the most impactful way.

Ellen released the book as if it were her real autobiography. Once excitement peaked, she revealed the reason behind why it stops short. A simple book then became a symbol of change.

Results from a YouGov survey showed 44% of UK teenage girls personally experience sport-related hate online. Causing thousands of young women to stop playing sport.

Our message was simple: online hate is cutting thousands of young girls’ sporting stories short. It needs to stop.

By tapping into Ellen White’s fanbase, we knew we’d be able to not only bring the truth to light but also rally support behind the campaign. And with Ellen being a beloved former national team player, we’d attract attention from the UK media and consequently those that could do something about it - the UK Government.

121 books were printed to represent the number of girls who drop out each day. These books were then sent to journalists and influencers on International Women’s Day.

The book was designed to resemble an ordinary sports autobiography when viewed from the front. Book size, paper weight and binding techniques were all chosen with that in mind.

But it all quickly changes inside. As Ellen’s life story continues, and she enters into her teenage years, the pages become harder to read and slowly fade to black. Online hate is visually represented by darkness and cuts the story short. At the exact age girls in the UK drop out of sport. Using special print techniques to make them disappear, Ellen’s greatest career achievements are then thrown into darkness.

Black on black inks extinguish her trophies. Debossed stud marks wipe out her goals. And foiled inks disappear her glory. The end result is a book that begins pure and white and ends in darkness. Encapsulated in the side profile of the pages which show the graduation from white to black.

Although the book was unfinished, it didn’t go unnoticed. It featured in Forbes, The Daily Mail, The Mirror, BBC, Sky Sports News and a whole host of sporting blogs and titles.

By successfully amassing local and national news coverage, we were able to make the nation aware of the horrible effect online hate has on the sporting stories of teenage girls in the UK.

The campaign received 492 million impressions in just 10 days. We increased traffic to EE’s online safety educational platform by +122% in only a week. And gained 178 million unique web visits that month.

But most importantly, we made it back into political discourse with the UK Government acknowledging the issue. And publically committing to legally requiring social media companies to protect their users from the scourge of online abuse. That’s how a humble book was able to change the game.