Australian NRL rugby league club Melbourne Storm has agreed a partnership with sportswear brand Star.
The five-year deal begins with the 2016 NRL season and will culminate in the 2020 campaign. Star has been named the official on-field apparel partner of the club. As part of the deal, the Storm’s home and away jerseys will be supplied by Star. The brand will also design the club’s training kit, as well as tracksuits, hoodies and backpacks.
The Storm’s players will next month undergo personalised fittings, making the deal the first in rugby league to incorporate custom-made jerseys. Melbourne Storm will become the first rugby league club to have its performance range produced by Star, joining AFL Aussie rules club Collingwood as the other professional sporting organisation in the Star family.
Craig Dyer, director of Star’s parent company TPF Sports, said: “This is a hugely important collaboration and relevant to our brand strategy to align with the best sporting clubs in Australia and one which we hope will take Melbourne Storm to the next level in innovative sportswear design.”
Meanwhile, fellow NRL club and current Premiership champion the North Queensland Cowboys has renewed its partnership with insurance provider Jardine Lloyd Thompson.
JLT will remain the club’s front-of-shorts sponsor for the 2016 and 2017 NRL seasons. As part of the deal, the company has also been granted naming rights to the Captains’ Lounge at the Cowboys’ home, 1300SMILES Stadium.
“We pride ourselves on being connected to our North Queensland communities and it’s obvious that JLT shares those same values,” Greg Tonner, the club’s chief executive, said.