Hollis Sponsorship Bulletin

Insurance and investments group LV = has been unveiled as the new title sponsor of rugby union’s Anglo-Welsh Cup, the joint competition managed by the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and Welsh Rugby Union (WRU).

 LV=, which has 3.6m customers, has signed an initial two-year deal, with an option for a further two. The deal builds on LV =’s existing investments in Rugby Union and complements the LV = County Championship in cricket.

 The newly-named LV = Cup, is a 16-team competition involving the 12 English Guinness Premiership clubs and four top Welsh clubs. Broadcast live on Sky Sports, this season’s edition commences on November 5 and the final will be played in March 2010. The winner, if an English club, will gain a place in next season’s Heineken Cup.

David Radford, group marketing director of LV =, commented: “As an expanding business, we see The LV= Cup providing a good fit with our target audience and we’re pleased to put our support behind this popular competition.”

Roger Lewis, Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) chief executive added: “Anglo-Welsh rivalries are amongst the oldest in world rugby and this competition will again stir a huge amount of excitement from players, coaches and fans.”

Golf and rugby union sevens will both be part of the Summer Olympics in 2016 and 2020 – following a vote by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) this week.

The inclusion of rugby sevens was widely welcomed – since it is expected to help the sport of rugby expand its global footprint in emerging markets. However the jury is out on the decision to allow golf into the Olympics. While the sport’s inclusion is expected to reinforce the Olympic movement’s commercial story, observers are unsure that such a professional discipline really fits the Olympic ethos.

For sports, the beauty of getting onto the Olympic roster is that it encourages countries to invest in their development – in the hope of securing a medal. This in turn makes the sport more attractive to sponsors. Rugby 7s was seen as a shoe-in – because it is an easy game for countries to develop. Golf, by contrast, has to overcome accusations from some observers that it is elitist and inaccessible.

Rugby Union club Wasps has signed its biggest ever sponsorship deal – with information storage group EMC.

The deal is worth £1 million (cash and VIK) over two years and is an expansion of a previous arrangement under which EMC was an official supplier to the club. Under the new deal, EMC becomes shirt sponsor. Director of rugby Mark Rigby called the sponsorship “a real boost to the team.”

EMC is a major player in its sector – with global revenues of $15 billion and an active presence in 60 countries.

In a major boost for UK sponsorship, England has been selected to host the 2015 Rugby World Cup. With London 2012 on the horizon and England also a front-runner to host the FIFA World Cup in 2018, the UK could be on the verge of a dynamic decade for the sports marketing sector.

England beat off competition from South Africa and Italy after proposing a commercial package worth around £300 million. Japan, after the disappointment of not being selected to host RWC 2011, has been named as host nation for the 2019 edition.

The current blueprint for the 2015 World Cup will see matches played between September 4 and October 17. Games will be played in 10 cities and 12 stadiums across the country – with the Final at Twickenham. Deloittes estimates that the event could be worth £2.1 billion to the British economy.

Guinness owner Diageo has done a deal with Premier Rugby which will see the stout brand extend its support of the Guinness Premiership by one season. As a result, it will retain the sponsorship until the end of the 2009/10 season.

Commenting on the renewal, Premier Rugby chief executive Mark McCafferty said: “We are extremely pleased to have concluded this extension with Diageo. They have been a fantastic partner for the best part of four years and we are relishing the opportunity to extend that partnership at a time of significant growth for the sport.”

Lee Bailey, Guinness sponsorship manager, said: “We are delighted to have reached an agreement with Premier Rugby to extend our partnership for a further season. The last  four years have been fantastic and we are proud to be the number one beer brand associated with rugby in GB.”

The decision to extend by just one year is part of a broader trend among sponsors. With the recession making long-term planning difficult, a number of companies are opting for the flexibility of short sponsorship contracts.

The International Rugby Board has unveiled electronics  giant Toshiba as title sponsor of its 2009 Junior World Championship 2009 in Japan. The company, which is a big backer of rugby union in Japan, will have naming rights for the 2009 tournament which takes place from June 5-21.

“The International Rugby Board is delighted to welcome Toshiba as title sponsor of the IRB Toshiba Junior World Championship,” said IRB chairman Bernard Lapasset as he announced the deal. “The appointment of one of the world’s biggest electronic brands highlights the enormous commercial appeal and prestige of the Championship.”

The three-week Championship will bring together 400 players from 16 nations. Noboru Mashimo, chairman and VP of the Japan Rugby Football Union said: “Toshiba has been a champion of Rugby in Japan for a long time and we are delighted that it is committed to what will be the largest international Rugby tournament ever to be staged in Japan.”

The global advertising market is set for a rocky 2009 – but there are signs that some blue-chip sponsors see value in marketing their way through the current recession.

EDF, for example, has just announced it will be renewing its sponsorship of ERC-controlled European club rugby tournaments, the Heineken Cup and European Challenge Cup. A four-year extension to the current deal means EDF will now back ERC until the end of the 2012/2013 season.

Explaining the rationale for the renewal, EDF communications officer Dominique Lagarde said the partnership with ERC provided “a powerful communication platform to generate positive brand exposure and to organise quality hospitality programmes in key European markets”.

This week also saw Mastercard renew its sponsorship of UEFA’s Champions League until the end of the 2011/12 season. Underlying the desire among big brands to hold on to top properties, Mastercard Europe’s president Javier Perez said sponsorships were a critical component of Mastercard’s marketing approach. Heineken, Sony and UniCredit have already signed up as CL partners for the 2009-2012 contract.

The Co-operative has unveiled a sponsorship deal which will see the retailer supporting the academies of sports stars Andrew Flintoff, Lee Westwood and Paul Sculthorpe.

The agreement, which has been made via Activate Sport, will see the stars’ Cricket, Golf and Rugby League Camps co-branded by the Co-op. It also provides The Co-op with a range of benefits including places on the academies and appearances with Flintoff, Westwood and Sculthorpe.

Commenting on the deal, Co-operative Group marketing director Patrick Allen said: “We are delighted to be working with Activate Sport, Andrew, Lee and Paul to support their camps and academies. The partnership allows us to reinforce The Co-operative’s ‘Good For Everyone’ brand campaign in 2009, whilst associating ourselves with three high-profile sporting role models in the process.”

Activate provides sport and adventure camps for 5-18 year-olds. As part of its activities, it supports the specialist academies of Flintoff, Westwood and Sculthorpe. “All the schemes take place in communities and promote participation and inclusion for children and families,” added Allen. “So it was a natural fit with our brand values. We’ll be working hard to involve our staff and customers in the activity, integrate the sponsorships across all our businesses and promote our association to a wide audience.”

Luke Sutton, Activate Sport Director said: “The Co-operative is a superb brand for us to have as our title sponsor. They’re very proactive and we can’t wait to start working with them to raise the profile of our activities and promote healthy and fun lifestyles.” Generate Sponsorship, who secured the sponsorship, will manage the partnership.

South African brewer SAB (part of the multinational group SABMiller – owner of lager brands such as Miller, Grolsch, Peroni Nastro Azzurro) is to sponsor the forthcoming British & Irish Lions rugby union tour of South Africa.

SAB’s lager brand Castle secured title sponsorship of the tour in a deal worth around £1.7m – confirming its status as one of the most important sports sponsors in the country. It sponsored the last Lions tour of South Africa in 1997 and will also be involved in the hotly-anticipated upcoming cricket test series between Australia and South Africa.

The Lions’ ten day tour of South Africa is expected to be one of the sporting highlights of the year – with analysts predicting it will be worth around £70 million to the local South African economy. It’s also a big earner for the Lions team – which has picked up a number of blue-chip sponsors. These include brands like HSBC, Guinness, adidas, British Airways, Marks & Spencer and First Cape.

In the UK, insurance group Aviva is best-known as the sponsor of UK Athletics. But over in the Republic of Ireland, it has just hit the headlines because of its decision to sponsor the new national rugby union and football stadium.

 Under the terms of the deal, Aviva has secured the naming rights to the new stadium for around 40 million Euros over 10 years. Although the opening of the Lansdowne Road replacement venue is planned for August 2010, the Aviva brand will benefit immediately from PR related to the deal.

All told, the naming rights deal will cover around 10% of the budget of the stadium. At the same time, it will come as a welcome boost to the sponsorship industry – which is striving for stability amid the current volatility. For rights holders and consultancies, it’s a welcome reminder that hot properties are still in demand during economic downturns.

The beauty of the deal from Aviva’s perspective is that it is not just a domestic opportunity. It will also allow the brand to associate with international showcase events such as the Six Nations Rugby Union Championships and the FIFA World Cup/UEFA Euro Qualifiers. Not only that, the stadium’s owner wants to host the 2011 Heineken Cup final.