Mitsubishi Motors, the automotive manufacturing arm of Japan’s Mitsubishi Group, has signed a multi-year partnership with the Rugby Football Union, the governing body of English rugby union.
The deal names Mitsubishi Motors an official partner of the RFU from the 2016-17 season onwards. Mitsubishi Motors’ branding will feature on the front of the playing and training jerseys of England’s U18 and U21 teams from next season.
Under the agreement, Mitsubishi Motors will also take on title sponsorship of the Exeter leg of the Rugby Europe Sevens Grand Prix Series. The event, which will officially be titled the Mitsubishi Motors Exeter Sevens, will take place at Sandy Park, the home of Premiership side the Exeter Chiefs, in July.
The 2016 Rugby Europe Sevens Grand Prix Series is a three-leg national team series, which comprises events in Exeter, the Russian capital of Moscow and Gdynia in Poland. Due to 2016 being an Olympic year, England and Wales will be replaced by two Great Britain teams, which will use the series to prepare for Rio 2016.
Commenting on the deal, Lance Bradley, managing director of Mitsubishi Motors UK, said: “It’s not only great news for us, but for our dealer network, our customers, and all rugby followers. The ethos and values of the game align perfectly with our own and the partnership announcement comes as a natural development of the work we are doing, and have already done to support some of the UK’s leading rugby clubs and players.”