Shorts: B&i Lions, British Cycling, Extreme E

The British & Irish Lions has announced a strategic partnership with Premiership Rugby and United Rugby Championship (URC).

The partnership will see the Lions working collaboratively with Premiership Rugby, the United Rugby Championship, and their clubs to ‘enhance the Australia 2025 tour’s offering.’

A critical aspect of the partnership is alignment on the tour schedule and an agreement that will enable all selected British & Irish Lions players to be available for all pre-tour activities.

The partnership will also facilitate a ‘collaborative approach’ to digital content, events and key announcements, as well as other marketing and promotional activities.

Ben Calveley, Chief Executive Officer of British & Irish Lions, said, “We are thrilled to be working in partnership with Premiership Rugby and United Rugby Championship and want to thank them for their support in reaching this landmark agreement. Our relationship with the clubs, who are the guardians of all potential Lions, is critical to any success we have, and we are committed to working with Premiership Rugby and United Rugby Championship in a spirit of collaboration.

“It is crucial that this agreement benefits not just The British & Irish Lions but also Premiership Rugby and United Rugby Championship. Our ambition is to make 2025 the greatest Lions Tour ever and we believe the opportunities for collaboration across marketing, promotional and wider activity will add significant value to all organisations.”

Simon Massie-Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of Premiership Rugby, added, “We know how much The British & Irish Lions means to our players, our clubs and our fans. And we are incredibly excited about this new landmark partnership and the opportunity to work in true collaboration with the Lions ahead of their tour to Australia in 2025.

“Everyone at Premiership Rugby understands how crucial it is to work closely with all stakeholders for the game to continue to thrive and grow. And giving our players and The British & Irish Lions the best possible preparation time in history is vital for both the Lions and Premiership Rugby as we support each other on and off the pitch.

“As a league, we are also looking forward to combining with the Lions to create some new and exciting content to promote the Tour, our players and clubs.

“We are now looking forward to seeing as many Premiership Rugby players as possible competing for a Test jersey and hopefully experience being on a winning tour.”

British Cycling has announced Trek as the organisation’s new community bike partner.

The partnership will see 500 new bikes provided to grow and diversify community participation across the country.

The three-year partnership will directly support the work of British Cycling’s network of community coaches, and the growth of its City Academies programme, which launched in 2021 to create new pathways into the sport for riders from diverse ethnic communities and lower socio-economic groups.

This year, the programme was extended to the West Midlands, with City Hubs now operational in Birmingham, Wolverhampton and Dudley.

Jon Dutton, Chief Executive Officer of British Cycling, said, “Our Community Coaches do brilliant work to help people from all different backgrounds to build up their confidence, develop new skills and discover the joy of cycling. We’re incredibly thankful to Trek for their support over the next three years and look forward to working with them to widen access to the sport in communities across the country.”

International off-road racing series Extreme E has announced a new partnership with Ocean Bottle.

Extreme E has purchased an initial 250 bespoke versions of the reusable bottle brand’s BOB bottle range, which is the equivalent to the removal of 250,000 ocean-bound plastic bottles.

Extreme E and Ocean Bottle are aiming to reach the target of removing the equivalent of 1,000,000 plastic bottles as part of a ‘joint environmental commitment towards the climate crisis.’

Ali Russell, Managing Director at Extreme E, said, “I am delighted to announce our new partnership with Ocean Bottle. They are an award-winning company with strong commitments towards delivering environmental solutions and positive action, and it is great to partner with them for our upcoming fourth season.”

Will Pearson, Co-Founder of Ocean Bottle, added, “Beyond the incredible impact already created by this partnership, Extreme E and Ocean Bottle share the deepest connection through our joint sustainability purpose. Creating social and environmental impact solutions is why we both exist and we’re proud to stand alongside Extreme E and their partners in this joint objective.”

England Netball has announced that it will host the Vitality Netball Nations Cup at Wembley and the First Direct Arena in January. 

The Vitality Netball Nations Cup will take the format of a four-day tournament featuring England, Australia, New Zealand and Uganda.  

With the locations confirmed, it means that the the Vitality Roses will return to the OVO Arena Wembley for the first time since 2017 and then play at the First Direct Arena, marking the first time that international netball has been held in the city of Leeds. 

Fran Connolly, Chief Executive Officer at England Netball said, “Following an historic summer where the Roses were once again catapulted into the nation’s hearts, we’re excited to host a Vitality Netball Nations Cup where our fans will have the privilege of watching some of the world’s very best netballers and of course have the opportunity to get behind the Vitality Roses. 

“The two venues in London and Leeds will offer the perfect backdrop for this incredible showcase of highly anticipated matches and demonstrates the growing support and interest in our sport in this country. We are very much looking forward to welcoming Australia, New Zealand and Uganda for this fiercely contested Series which will get the 2024 netball calendar off to a fantastic start.” 

This announcement follows England Netballs recent plans to relaunch the Netball Superleague in 2025, within its journey to professionalisation. 

UK-based digital image tech start-up SmartFrame Technologies has appointed Andrea Mason as its new Global Advertising Sales Director. 

Joining the leadership team, Mason will oversee the company’s contextual advertising offering and be responsible for exploring new opportunities.  

Her role involves ‘enhancing existing business sectors, discovering new opportunities, and driving the growth of the ad sales team and global operations to align with the company’s expansion.’ 

Rob Sewell, CEO of SmartFrame Technologies said, “Andrea’s extensive experience in advertising, coupled with her understanding of the publisher marketplace, will be invaluable as we execute our strategy and continue to scale the business. 

“I’ve every confidence that, under her stewardship, our ad sales team will deliver even stronger results as more and more brands incorporate the benefits of our contextual targeting platform into their ad planning.” 

London-based sports production and media company Sunset+Vine has announced a partnership with Baseball United to deliver TV coverage of the Baseball United’s Inaugural All- Star showcase. 

The showcase will include a two-game series between Dubai-based Baseball United’s East All- Baseball United’s East All-Stars and West All-Stars, involving 22 professional players. 

The live broadcast will incorporate several ‘mic’d up players’ and a 30-minute pre-game show and post-game wrap up. 

Kash Shaikh, Chairman, CEO, and Majority Owner of Baseball United, said, “Sunset+Vine has done outstanding work across many sports over the years. Now, I’m excited for them to be a part of the first professional baseball production in the history of this region. They’ve been with us as we’ve begun to transform our early vision into next week’s exciting reality. Our collective teams are fully -focused on putting on a great show.” 

Clothing brand Perry Ellis Europe has announced an office move to new Essex location. 

The business owns a roster of casual and sportswear brands including Perry Ellis, Original Penguin and Farah, as well as licensing trademarks for Nike swimwear and Jack Nicklaus golf clothing. 

The new office location in Witham, Essex is part of the company’s dedication to future investments, supporting further business growth and fostering a dynamic work environment.  

Carl Davis, CEO at Perry Ellis Europe said, “At Perry Ellis Europe, we take immense pride in our commitment to our employees. The new office is modern and enables us to offer greater flexibility and comfort to our team, reflecting our dedication to their well-being, comfort, and productivity. 

“We believe that the inspiring and modern work environment will be a magnet for professionals who share our vision for excellence and innovation and help Perry Ellis Europe to attract and retain our talent, and we’re excited about what the future may bring.” 

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