Mike Burton Group Wins Lions Contract

The British & Irish Lions have appointed the Mike Burton Group to
exclusively manage the official licensed corporate hospitality programme for the
2009 Lions tour to South Africa.

The contract will see the Mike Burton Group recommend for appointment a
network of specialist travel and hospitality agents, who between them will
market and sell a variety of official ticket-inclusive supporter travel and
corporate hospitality products.

The Mike Burton Group was appointed to manage the tickets allocated to the
British & Irish Lions travel and hospitality programme for all of the
provincial fixtures and the three Test matches after a competitive pitch.

It is the first time that the British & Irish Lions have appointed one
company to manage the entire travel and hospitality operation.

Commenting on the appointment John Feehan, the British Lions Limited chief
executive, said: ‘Tens of thousands of supporters travelled to New Zealand in
2005 and the number travelling in 2009 is expected to be considerably more. It
is important to highlight that fans obtaining tickets from unofficial sources
run the risk of having those tickets cancelled.’

The official licensed operator programme will see a number of specialist
companies appointed to sell official ticket-inclusive supporter travel packages
and official corporate hospitality products.

A new company, Lions Tour Limited, has been set up to manage the contract.

The official licensed operators will be appointed later this year. Companies
wishing to ‘express an interest’ in becoming an official licensed operator
should visit www.lionstour.com.