Is Vrbo’s Nick Saban Ad Trolling Airbnb Rooms?

Vrbo has a new ad featuring legendary Alabama University football coach and current ESPN analyst Nick Saban as a nightmare vacation rental host. He soaks in a hot tub with with a clearly unsettled couple seeking privacy, tells them they can shower for five minutes maximum, and warns there’s “no fun” allowed.

With around eight seconds remaining in the one-minute ad, a narrator says, “Meanwhile, at a Vrbo, when other vacation rentals make you share your turf with a host, try one you have all to yourself.” It finishes with a family seated at a table on an outdoor deck with a view of a lake or an ocean in the background.

Vrbo’s ads over the past couple of years have been taking veiled pot shots at Airbnb, and this one, which is called Relax, Host Free Stays, seems to be no exception. It’s main message is that guests shouldn’t have to put up with a lack of privacy and overbearing hosts.

Airbnb launched Airbnb Rooms to much fanfare in the summer of 2023. Sharing a room in a host’s vacation rental or apartment was billed as a affordable alternative for budget minded guests, and it comes with the opportunity to meet a cool host and to soak in the local vibe.

For example, this Airbnb listing in Avon, Colorado, touts the fact that guests can “stay with Nicki,” an esthetician.

Airbnb Rooms hasn’t been one of the company’s biggest hits.

“The reality is the biggest issue with Airbnb Rooms is just a small percent of our business,” Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky told financial analysts during an earnings call in August. “It’s a very small percentage. So even if it – no matter how fast it grows, it’s off a very small base. It’s however going to be started by providing a room in house. It’s very affordable. It’s very popular for Gen Z, but it is off a very small base. And so you’re not going to see a major change to the growth rate of the company based on that.”

Airbnb had no comment on the latest Vrbo ad.

Vrbo’s Nick Saban ad will be aired nationally in the U.S. on TV starting this weekend, according to an Expedia Group spokesperson. Vrbo is an Expedia Group vacation rental brand.

The final image in the Vrbo ad includes its logo and the words, “Official Sponsor of the College Football Playoff.” It also sponsors the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.

The campaign will also feature out-of home advertising, “stadium signage, partnerships and other activations,” the Expedia Group spokesperson said.