SA Rugby seeks new sevens partner as Steinhoff makes early exit

SA Rugby, the governing body of rugby union in South Africa, is searching for a new main sponsor for its sevens teams after retail group Steinhoff International opted to end its partnership.

Steinhoff agreed a three-year deal to sponsor the Springbok Sevens in December 2015, and its partnership with the body had been due to run until the end of this year.

However, SA Rugby confirmed today (Monday) that it had received notification from the company that it was withdrawing from all sponsorship activities. As a result, SA Rugby’s men’s, women’s and academy sevens teams will no longer carry Steinhoff’s logo on their kit.

SA Rugby chief executive Jurie Roux said: “We have been kept informed by Steinhoff of their thinking and they have confirmed their intention to withdraw from their sponsorship of Sevens rugby with immediate effect.

“It has been completed amicably and by agreement. We’d like to thank Steinhoff for their commitment and support over the past two seasons.”

On the search for a new partner, Roux added: “We believe all our national teams have characteristics, values and a unique South African DNA that makes them highly attractive to commercial partners.

“The Springbok Sevens team has added to that with consistently high standards of performance as the current holders of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series title and we believe they will be an attractive proposition for potential partners.”

South Africa’s men’s sevens team will be seeking to defend its Commonwealth Games title at this year’s edition of the multi-sport event in Australia’s Gold Coast region in April. The team will also compete at the Rugby World Cup Sevens in the US city of San Francisco in July.

South Africa’s women’s sevens team will also contest both events.