Shorts: Urc, Six Nations, DAZN
The United Rugby Championship (URC) and Elixirr have joined forces, with the business consultancy becoming the new official data partner of the competition.
Elixirr will offer its full range of consultancy services to the league and its clubs in a business-first approach to drive stronger fan engagement to enhance the BKT URC as a whole.
Additionally, through the support of Elixirr and Oval Insights, fans, media and broadcasters will have access to new forms of statistical and insight-led content that identifies the key players and match-winning tactics from the URC across every round.
Elixirr will look to support club marketing teams around the URC by growing and supporting merchandise sales analytics and crowd demographics to deliver better in-bowl retail strategies and experiences. Crowd flow analysis will also ensure that stadium crowd management strategies are safer.
Throughout this partnership, Elixirr will orchestrate an ‘Innovation Think Tank’, working collaboratively with the 16 teams across the league to uncover their biggest challenges, focusing on innovation to tackle the key challenges identified.
Martin Anayi, Chief Executive Officer of the URC, said, “Growth is always our key priority and innovation will always be at the heart of that ambition for the URC. What is fantastic about Elixirr is that they don’t just want an association with our league, they want to go beyond that and be a key driver to the future success of the URC and our clubs. In the past number of years we have made data insights a key part of how we operate our business and with Elixirr on board we can drive new growth across the league.”
Six Nations Rugby has appointed Hannah Bowe to take up the newly created position of Chief of Staff.
In her new role, Bowe will play a vital role in the delivery of the organisation’s vision and strategy, supporting Chief Executive Officer, Tom Harrison, and in collaboration with the wider executive team.
Bowe joins Six Nations Rugby from Sky Sports’ commercial team, where she was primarily responsible for rights acquisitions across its sports portfolio including men’s and women’s football, F1, tennis and rugby.
Prior to her three years at Sky Sports, Bowe was a Director at Esportif (now part of Wasserman), overseeing the company’s strategic insights and consulting division, investment workstreams, and relationships with unions, clubs, and competitions.
Bowe also holds Non-Executive Director positions with the Professional Cricketers’ Association (PCA) and England Lacrosse.
Tom Harrison, Chief Executive Officer of Six Nations Rugby, said, “It’s a hugely exciting time for international rugby union and Six Nations Rugby has a key role to play in bringing the opportunity to life for fans, players, and our partners’.
“Hannah will be a great addition to our team; she brings strong and relevant experience across a variety of leading organisations, perfectly setting her up to play a central role in delivering our strategy.”
DAZN has announced the appointment of Charles Ma as Head of Media Rights Sales.
According to a statement, Ma’s appointment is designed to further strengthen its broadcast partnerships division, whilst seeking high profile partners such as Fiba, IPL and WTA to add to the roster.
Aviv Giladi, President, DAZN Broadcast Partnerships, announced, “DAZN is growing in all aspects of its business as rights holders recognise our ability to use our technology and network of relationships to deliver exceptional reach, quality, and value. Adding people of the calibre of Charles to an already strong central function will add further capabilities, increasing value for sports media rights holders.”
Charles Ma, Head of Media Rights Sales (APAC), commented, “It’s great to be joining such a dynamic and growth focused business as DAZN. I am looking forward to help growing this element of DAZN’s business. It’s an increasingly important function as rights holders look for the best ways to monetise their content and reach their fans in meaningful and sustainable ways.”
This appointment follows recent agreement of series of deals between DAZN and FIGBC and S&T Sports
The Jockey Club announces £2m of changes to the Randox Grand National in its commitment to equestrian welfare.
The organiser of the Randox Grand National at Aintree Racecourse, which next year takes place on 13th April, has announced several changes to the prestigious national hunt horse race.
To reduce the risk of incidents during the race, the maximum number of runners will be reduced from 40 to 34.
Furthermore, the first fence on the racecourse will be moved 60 yards closer to the start to slow down the early stages, as well as a standing start will apply to all races over the Grand National fences.
The race’s start time will be bought forward to ensure the best ground conditions. Horses will no longer be led by a handler on-course during the pre-Grand National parade but will instead be released at the end of the horse walk to canter in front of the grandstands, allowing them to prepare at their own pace.
Infrastructure changes to the course include alterations to the alignment of the running rail, a reduction in the height of Fence 11, and the introduction of foam and rubber toe boards on every fence. Pop-up irrigation will be expanded for more effective watering of the course, and the walkways in the paddock will be widened.
Finally, pre-race veterinary protocols will also be developed in collaboration with the British Horse Association (BHA).
Nevin Truesdale, Chief Executive of The Jockey Club, said, “The Randox Grand National is the most iconic race in the world and one which transcends our sport. It is part of the fabric of British sporting life alongside the likes of Wimbledon, the FA Cup and the Open golf and is loved and watched by millions of people all over the world every year. For many it is also their introduction to horseracing and I believe that a competitive, fair and safe Randox Grand National is one of the best ways of ensuring the sport continues to thrive for generations to come and remains an important part of Britain’s culture and economy.
“That means our sport, like many other sports have done, needs to recognise when action needs to be taken to evolve because the safety and care of horses and jockeys will always be our number one priority. In making these changes at Aintree we are underlining our relentless focus on welfare and our commitment to powering the future of British racing.’’
Sport and entertainment agency Fuse has been appointed by British Gas as its partnership consultancy and activation agency.
Victoria Chew, Managing Partner at Fuse said, “The prospect of working with new clients is always exciting, but especially so with a brand like British Gas, re-entering the partnership world with big ambitions.
“We are proud of the work we have delivered so far and are delighted to now be able to bring to life the partnerships creatively. We look forward to working with British Gas to achieve its business goals internally and externally, by leveraging such an exciting portfolio of rights.”
Andy Freeman, Marketing Director at British Gas added, “Fuse have been instrumental in the crafting and negotiation of these game changing sports partnerships.
They’re a partner who have embedded themselves into our brand and our challenges and we’re confident in their expertise to help us drive forward our partnerships as we power forward on our mission to use the power of sport to drive positive change in communities and change energy for the better.’’
The Ageas Bowl announced a multi-year partnership extension with Pangea Insurance Brokers
This extension will see Pangea Insurance Brokers become an official partner of The Ageas Bowl, with its branding to be featured prominently in and around The Ageas Bowl and on the sleeve of Hampshire Cricket and Southern Vipers kits.
David Mann, Chief Executive at The Ageas Bowl, stated,“We are delighted to expand our partnership with Pangea. As a local business, who serve our surrounding business community, we have enjoyed following their success and look forward to seeing this continue in future years.”
Michael Piper, Director of Pangea Insurance Brokers, added,“We look forward to continuing our close working relationship in the years to come. We look ahead to next season and introducing more of our client’s to the south’s premier events venue.”
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