World Rugby Kicks-Off Hunt for Apparel Partners

IMG, in partnership with World Rugby, has begun its hunt for a global sports apparel supplier for all competitions during the 2021-24 period.

License Global

February 2, 2021

For the first time, a new global supplier will have access to rights and assets for all of World Rugby’s international competitions, including Rugby World Cup 2021 and 2023.

"We are delighted to be kicking off this important process with IMG, our global master licensee,” says Tom Hill, commercial director, World Rugby. “The selection of the right apparel supplier is key to projecting the sport, engaging with fans and growing revenues for reinvestment in the sport. Given the prestige of the properties this agreement will cover, the success of the apparel program at RWC 2019 in Japan, and excitement around France 2023, this is an attractive and lucrative proposition for interested parties – one that will directly support the growth of rugby worldwide.”

“Rugby is enjoying unprecedented worldwide growth across male, female and youth participation after Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan broke a multitude of records in one of the most impactful and ground-breaking tournaments in the game’s history,”

says Mickael Andreo, vice president, licensing, IMG. “We are looking forward to taking this opportunity to market as we believe it represents a singular opportunity for brands aiming to position themselves as the authority in the rugby space.”

The Rugby World Cup in 2019 was the first to be hosted in Asia and broke attendance and broadcast audience records with 1.8 million fans in stadiums and more than 857 million tuning in across the globe, and, notably, a 40 percent performance increase of merchandise sales in comparison to the 2015 competition.

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