HSBC Named Rugby Sevens World Series Title Sponsor
The International Rugby Board has signed a deal with global financial services company, HSBC, that will make it the first ever title sponsor of the IRB Sevens World Series.
Under the five-year agreement, HSBC will receive naming rights to the IRB Series, which comprises tournaments in Dubai, South Africa, New Zealand, USA, Australia, Hong Kong, England and Scotland. The Series will now be known as the HSBC Sevens World Series and will begin with the Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens on December 3.
“These are very exciting times for our Sport and this deal will benefit Rugby at all levels," International Rugby Board President Bernard Lapasset commented. "The appointment of a market leader in the banking industry as title sponsor of the IRB Sevens World Series further enhances Rugby Sevens’ prominent stature as an Olympic sport with significant prestige and attraction within the global marketplace.”
“HSBC is an internationally renowned brand and a true champion of the development of Rugby around the world. HSBC has a massively successful history of working with its partners to develop the Game on and off the field through the HSBC Rugby Festivals and sponsorship of the Asian 5 Nations.”
The announcement represents a further boost for Rugby Sevens as the sport marks the one-year anniversary of being voted into the Olympic Games, starting with the 2016 Games in Rio de Janeiro.
Giles Morgan, Group Head of Sponsorship, HSBC Holdings, said: “HSBC has a long standing heritage in Rugby, and is excited about investing in such a thriving area of the Game. The addition of the HSBC Sevens World Series to HSBC’s current international Rugby portfolio will allow the bank to further engage with its customers and staff around the world. Through our continued investment in the grassroots level of the Game, which will be expanded to include Rugby Sevens, HSBC will be at the forefront of encouraging even more people to watch and play the sport.”
HSBC's previous rugby sponsorships include the Telford Raiders in the Rugby League Conference, and in Australia, HSBC sponsors the New South Wales Waratahs rugby team, as well as the Hawthorn Football Club of the AFL.
“We look forward to working in close collaboration with HSBC to further the promotion of the Game in new and existing Rugby markets as we count down to Sevens’ Olympic Games debut in Rio de Janeiro in 2016, an event that will herald the beginning of another exciting chapter in the Rugby Sevens success story,” Lapasset said.
