Rugby Champions Cup Gets Go-ahead
The new European Rugby Champions Cup, a replacement for the Heineken Cup, has been given the go-ahead to start next season – featuring 20 teams, rather than 24, with six from the Aviva Premiership, six from the French Top 14 and seven from the Pro12.
The final place will then be decided by a play-off, with a new European Rugby Challenge Cup to replace the second-tier Amlin Cup and a new third-tier cup will be introduced, called the Qualifying Competition.
‘We are looking forward to our clubs being part of an invigorated set of European competitions in the European Rugby Champions Cup and European Rugby Challenge Cup,’ said Dominic Hayes, Premiership Rugby commercial director.
‘The sponsorship model for these is similar to the Champions League in that they will not have a title sponsor but will instead focus on four to six major partners.’
‘We already know that there is strong interest from a number of brands who see the huge value in a partnership with elite European club rugby. We believe that there is enormous potential to drive the commercial value of the competitions.’
Rupert Pratt, managing director of the sport and entertainment agency Generate, told sportindustry.biz: ‘It’s great for the game that this has finally been resolved. The cup will be a big revenue driver.’
‘I would expect the sponsorship income would increase by two thirds or even double within two or three years. I would also anticipate the broadcast revenue to go up by at least 50% and that is probably a conservative figure,’ Pratt added.
The heads of agreement – the principles behind the deal – were signed by the nine parties involved on Thursday, bringing an end to a two-year saga.
The signatories are the unions from the Six Nations countries, plus the club bodies for England, France and Wales.
Speaking in The Telegraph, Steve Martin, chief executive of sports agency M&C Saatchi Sport & Entertainment, commented: ‘It is a really smart play to follow the Champions League model, as that way you get those brands doing the marketing for the tournament and not just one brand but four to six.’
‘In the current structure, the second tier sponsors were promoting Heineken, but what you can do now is promote your own brand and promote the tournament.’
‘The trick now is to have the right brands, with the right flair and creativity. As well as the traditional rugby brands, you want to have a bit of a maverick brand in there that has a bit of energy and innovation. Rugby is hot at the minute, it will be an attractive proposition for brands to go in and support it.’
