PepsiCo-owned isotonic drinks brand Gatorade has entered into a five-year partnership with New Zealand Rugby (NZR), rugby union’s governing body in the country.
Gatorade has agreed a deal running from 2016 to 2020 to replace Coca-Cola-owned sports drinks brand Powerade as NZR’s official hydration partner. Powerade had sponsored the body for over 20 years.
Gatorade will sponsor the men’s All Blacks side, as well as the Maori All Blacks, the All Blacks Sevens, New Zealand Women’s Sevens, the Black Ferns and the New Zealand U20s.
Under the agreement, NZR will also be granted access to the Gatorade Sports Science Institute – Gatorade’s research and development branch which specialises in athlete health and performance optimisation.
“We were looking for an instantly recognisable, global brand with the scale to help us increase the profile of the New Zealand game and our teams overseas so a partnership with Gatorade made sense on many levels,” NZR chief executive Steve Tew said.
“Gatorade is the perfect fit for a dynamic, endurance-based sport like rugby – the strength of the brand is backed by 50 years of science, research and development – and it's widely used by many of the world’s elite athletes and teams.”