Australian Rugby Union today announced the global foreign exchange broker FxPro as the domestic naming rights partner to Super Rugby for the next four years.
FxPro Super Rugby will kick off in 2012 with the last weekend in February launching a new relationship between ARU and a world leader in the foreign exchange industry.
The unveiling of the new name and logo for FxPro Super Rugby was made in Sydney where star players from the five Australian Conference teams also modelled their new strips for the coming season.
Super Rugby moved to a Conference format in 2011, expanded its finals series and welcomed a new team in the Melbourne Rebels – giving Australia parity with SANZAR partners New Zealand and South Africa who also field five sides in the championship.
For 2012 there will be a further new-look with the addition of FxPro to Super Rugby under a deal with ARU that will continue until the end of 2015.
FxPro’s logo will appear on the official match ball at each game in Australia, and the official match jerseys and shorts for all five Australian franchises – the NSW Waratahs, Queensland Reds, Melbourne Rebels, Western Force and The Brumbies.
FxPro branding will also be prominently displayed in-stadium and on-screen at all Super Rugby matches played in Australia.
The five Australian teams currently play 16 matches each during the Super Rugby season – including eight each at home for a collective total of 40 games in Australia.
Four of the eight home matches are local derbies with the Australian teams also hosting two teams from each of the South African and New Zealand Conferences.
Of their eight away matches for Australian teams, four are played in Australia as “away” local derbies. The only matches an Australian team plays outside the country are the two games they face in both New Zealand and South Africa.
ARU Managing Director and CEO John O’Neill AO welcomed the announcement of FxPro as the new Australian naming rights partner for Super Rugby.
The company, which has recently expanded its operations into Australia with the opening of a Sydney office, already boasts an impressive arsenal of sporting sponsorships.
The award-winning foreign exchange broker currently sponsors Fulham in the English Premier League, the Asian Football Confederation Champions League, the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC), and previously partnered with Formula One teams.
“We’re delighted to welcome FxPro into the framework of Australian Rugby through a now well-established championship that is unquestionably the best of its type in the world,” Mr O’Neill said.
“The status of Super Rugby clearly has an alignment with the objectives of FxPro and we believe the relationship will be enormously beneficial to both parties.
“Having a foreign exchange broker with offices across a large number of nations is fitting for a championship that is unique – being played across three territories as diverse as Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
“There is not another regular Rugby competition of such magnitude and length that has as broad a reach as Super Rugby.”
Jim Manczak, Chief Marketing Officer said FxPro was committed to developing the strength of its brand through sponsorship with Australia as a key market.
“The decision to partner with the ARU and Super Rugby is a natural fit with the future ambitions of the business, and we are delighted to be partnered with such an exciting and popular tournament,” he said.
“FxPro Super Rugby is a showcase for the world’s best rugby players and the Australian teams are home to some of the biggest stars in the game like James O’Connor, James Horwill, Kurtley Beale, Quade Cooper, David Pocock and Will Genia.
“We wish all of the teams the best of luck for the upcoming season."
