BMW is to replace Land Rover as the vehicle partner to the England rugby union team, after the British car marque expressed its frustrations at the behaviour of the players during the last World Cup.
The four-year partnership with the RFU will see the German car brand title sponsor England’s youth development programme and serve as the shirt sponsor for the under 16, under 18 and under 20 national teams from September.
It marks the first time that the shirt sponsor for the youth teams will differ from the senior squad, which is sponsored by O2.Additionally, BMW will develop promotions to be delivered through the RFU’s digital channels at Twickenham.
Financial details were not disclosed, however RFU chief commercial officer, Sophie Goldschmidt, says the deal is “significantly more” than its current deal with Tata Motors-owned Land Rover.
She adds: “Land Rover were keen to continue the relationship, however we made the decision to partner with BMW because the breadth of the relationship allowed us to continue our strategy of developing grassroots Rugby in the UK.”
Last October Land Rover accused the Rugby Football Union (RFU) of misleading England players over the nature of a sponsor’s event during the last World Cup.
The partnership follows other recent RFU tie-ups with Canterbury, O2, and GSK.
BMW Group UK managing director Tim Abbott, says: “The game is a perfect brand fit for us and this news comes as a natural extension of the work we have already done to support some of the UK’s leading sports stars.”
The brand has a number of sports sponsorships, including one as a top tier partner of this year’s Olympic Games and a multi-year deal with Puma.
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