Industry Shorts: Lions, Sky Sports, Lancashire Cricket

The British & Irish Lions has announced a new licensing partnership with mouthguard manufacturer OPRO.  

The agreement is one of a number of new license deals secured by brand licensing specialist The Point.1888, which has partnered with the representative team to create a new range of products ahead of the Castle Lager Lions Series in South Africa this summer.

The partnership grants OPRO the rights to produce Lions-branded mouthguards, available for purchase through its network of global retailers.   

The opening race of the Formula 1 season in Bahrain was the most-watched ever on Sky Sports’ channels, according to the broadcaster.

The race, which saw reigning world champion Lewis Hamilton fend off challenger Max Verstappen in thrilling fashion, was watched by an average of 1.98 million viewers, peaking at 2.23 million. The weekend’s qualifying session also smashed records, averaging at 1.14 million and peaking at 1.34 million.

The previous highest figure for an F1 race on Sky Sports came at the USA Grand Prix in November 2014, which saw a peak figure of 1.95 million viewers.

Lancashire Cricket has announced The Energy Check as its new Official Energy Procurement and Consultancy Partner.

The initial one-year agreement will see the energy consultancy’s logo feature on the front of Lancashire’s training shirt for the first time and become headline sponsor of the club’s Game Changer of the Month programme, which rewards contributions to individuals working in cricket across the county each month.

As Official Energy Partner, The Energy Check will also play a key role in assisting Lancashire with managing its energy consumption, helping to identify renewable energy opportunities around Emirates Old Trafford.

AE Live has announced a long-term agreement with ITV Sport to provide graphics services for its horse racing coverage. 

The 2021 schedule will see AE’s operational teams working on 59 race meetings across 94 days, delivering a range of presentation and in-race graphics, including augmented reality content. 

The broadcast graphics agency’s in-house creative team has introduced a number of new templates to add to the existing graphics package, and will work with ITV’s team to improve the aesthetics of the existing style, while also introducing new graphical elements such as infobars and timelines, as well as new promotional graphics and other additions for VT. 

Global sport for social change organisation Laureus has appointed Drew Barrand to head up its commercial department.

Barrand joins the organisation having previously worked freelance as a commercial consultant. Prior to that, he served as Marketing Director, The EFL.

Commenting on the appointment, Barrand said: “There is a lot of talk about purpose in sport and the era of athlete activism but this only resonates when the output is tangible. That’s what excites me the most – that Laureus offers an end-to-end solution at a time when people need all that sport has to offer more than ever.”

Running, hiking and fitness kit manufacturer inov-8 has announced it will open its first-ever brand store, which will be located in the brand’s home of the Lake District.

A new store, called The Forge, will open 15th April in Staveley, in partnership with Kendal-based retailer Pete Bland Sports, who were the first to stock the brand’s shoes in 2003. 

Inov-8 says it is opening the store ahead of what it expects to be a big summer of hiking and trail running in the National Park.

TalkSPORT will host its first ever live fan phone-in show dedicated to the Betfred Super League after the Huddersfield Giants v Catalans Dragons game on Saturday 3rd April.

The show, hosted by Mark Wilson, will feature special guests, including reaction from players and coaches, and will ask fans about their hopes for the return of league for the 2021 season.

Mose Masoe, the former Hull KR player who suffered a career-ending injury in a pre-season match in 2020, will be supported by a fundraising effort from the Super League this weekend, and will also join the show to discuss his rehabilitation and thoughts on the 2021 campaign.