Australian NRL rugby league club the Newcastle Knights has upgraded its partnership with health insurance company Nib, while rival team the North Queensland Cowboys has agreed a shirt sponsorship deal with Bundaberg Rum.
Nib’s new three-year deal with the Knights covers the 2017 to 2019 seasons and promotes the company to the position of principal and naming rights partner.
Under the expanded agreement, the team will officially be known as the Nib Newcastle Knights. Nib’s branding will now feature on the front of the Knights’ playing jerseys, having previously appeared on the sleeve.
Nib is the Knights’ longest-serving partner and company executive Rhod McKensey said: “We’ve been a corporate supporter of the Newcastle Knights since day one and have maintained a strong partnership ever since, taking pride of place as the club’s sleeve sponsor from 2003.
“An important element in our overall brand strategy, the Knights sponsorship provides nib with exceptional brand exposure across the traditional rugby league heartlands of New South Wales and Queensland, as well as Victoria.”
Meanwhile, Bundaberg Rum has signed a multi-year agreement with the Cowboys for its branding to feature on the sternum area of the team’s jerseys.
The deal is the evolution of a long-running partnership between the Cowboys and the team's major sponsor Diageo, which is Bundaberg Rum’s parent company.
The agreement covers the Cowboys’ home and away shirts, as well as the new Auckland Nines and Women in League jerseys. Diageo has opted to give the sternum sponsorship spot on the club’s indigenous team's jersey to the Cowboys Community Foundation.