Rugby Australia has signed its first dedicated female retailers for its Sevens Women’s Squad and the Wallaroos. Meanwhile, Wests Tigers’ struggles are far from over after they lost a one-million-dollar sponsorship deal with Brydens Lawyers.
Welcome back to B&T’s Spotlight on Sponsors series, where we break down all the major sponsorship news from inside the sporting world.
B&T unpacks all the latest news in sports sponsorship below!
Forcast x Rugby Australia
Australia’s female rugby team is set to sport a new look off the field with renowned women’s fashion label Forcast joining on as an official partner of Rugby Australia. Forecast merchandise will be worn by the Australia Sevens Women’s Squad and the Wallaroos at formal events and functions. This is the first time that both teams have signed with a supplier solely dedicated to women.
Rugby Sevens stars Demi Hayes, Bienne Terita and Alysia Lefau-Fakaosilea recently joined Wallaroos players Siokapesi Palu, Faitala Moleka and Emily Chancellor for a photo shoot of Forcast’s winter range.
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“We are thrilled to be the first official womenswear supplier for Rugby Australia, and to embark on this journey with its Teams in Gold, particularly at such a pivotal time in women’s sports,” said Alicia Chea, head of digital at Forcast.
“As a brand deeply rooted in empowering women, this partnership aligns with our mission to help women feel confident and stylish at work, at play and in sport…wherever they may be kicking goals”.
Brydens Lawyers x Wests Tigers
The Wests Tigers have confirmed that Brydens Lawyers will end their one-million-dollar partnership with the club at the end of the 2024 season.
The law firm first joined the club in 2015 and upgraded to a principal shirtfront partnership in 2016. In an official statement shared to the Tigers’ website, it was announced the relationship would be coming to a close.
Wests Tigers CEO Shane Richardson thanked the Sydney based firm for its loyalty over the years. “This club has faced several challenges on and off the field over this time, but the one constant throughout has been the unwavering support from Brydens Lawyers,” he said.
The news comes amid a period of unrest for the struggling club. In December last year, former Tigers chairman Lee Hagipantelis, who also happens to be the principal of Brydens Lawyers, was ousted from the club in dramatic fashion following an internal review commissioned by major shareholder Holman Barnes.
Following the fallout, there was much debate surrounding the future of the firm’s connection with the club past the end of their existing deal.
NRL journo Phil Rothfield officially broke the news, reporting in a column in The Daily Telegraph that he had seen a scathing two-page letter penned by Hagipantelis and addressed to Tigers’ head of corporate partnerships, Nathan Russell (who was not involved in Hagipantelis’ exit), that announced the end of the relationship between the law firm and the club.
Rothfield was reportedly advised by News Corp to remove the letter from the piece to avoid defamatory ramifications. “You should see the unedited version of the letter,” Rothfield told Sky Sports Radio’s Big Sports Breakfast.
He did report large chunks of the final letter in which Hagipantelis referred to the review as a “sham” and called key stakeholders at the club “cowards”.
B&T contacted Brydens Lawyers for comment on the end of the partnership but did not receive a response prior to publication.
The end of the relationship leaves the Tigers in the hunt for a new principal front-of-short sponsor ahead of the kick-off of the 2025 season.
BSc x NSWRL
With the Women’s 2024 Ampol State of Origin kicking off this week, and the men’s in just a few weeks time, the Westpac NSW Blues & Westpac NSW Sky Blues have announced a new partnership with BSc.
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The Australian-made and highly experienced manufacturer of health and wellness solutions is committed to maintaining the highest standards of quality with HASTA-certified, athlete-approved supplements. The partnership will see activations before State of Origin games that allow fans to sample products. It also supplies NSW Origin players, including pathways teams, with hydration and nutrition products as well as activations before State of Origin matches for fans to sample products.
“The NSWRL is thrilled to announce our new partnership with BSc with the State of Origin series just around the corner,” NSWRL chief commercial officer Jodie Cross said. “The Origin arena requires our players to be in peak physical condition, and BSc will help us achieve that with their range of products, including supplements, energy drinks and protein bars”.
