UK rugby CEO defends Twickenham rebrand to Allianz Stadium
Rugby stadiums in Wales, Ireland and Scotland are now branded with commercial names as are many southern hemisphere stadiums
10 September 2024 - 13:46
byMitch Phillips
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Twickenham Stadium is to be known as Allianz Stadium. Picture: REUTERS.
London — England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU) boss, Bill Sweeney, has defended the decision to rebrand Twickenham as the “Allianz Stadium” in a 10-year, £100m deal, saying the bigger question was why they did not do it earlier.
The national rugby stadiums of Wales, Ireland and Scotland are now branded with commercial names, as are many southern hemisphere stadiums, and Twickenham, England’s home since 1910, has followed suit with changeover of signage already under way.
“I think it’s really encouraging for the game when you have a company like them [German insurance group Allianz] investing in rugby union in England,” Sweeney told journalists following August’s announcement of the rebranding plans.
“They have branding naming rights across seven other stadiums around the world, they are passionate about rugby from the top down, they’ve got experience in stadium redevelopment so that helps us for our [development] plans for Twickenham 2027 and they are providing a significant investment over a multi-year period which is coming into the game.
“They’ve been very clear from the outset that they want to see a certain amount of that activity targeted at the community game.”
Asked if the RFU “had to do it” given the money involved, Sweeney said: “You wouldn’t want to walk away from a very significant investment with a partner which shares similar values and similar passions for the game.
“The question is ‘why didn’t we do it earlier? Why haven’t we had a naming-rights partner sooner?’ But it’s a really good deal, good for the game.
“They’re doing it for the right reasons — the vast majority of the people we interact with understand it’s the right deal for the game. You’ll get certain resistance for traditional reasons, that’s wholly understandable, and there’ll be a period of time where it takes time to adjust.”
Twickenham, named after the area of London in which it was built in 1907, held its first rugby international in 1910 when England hosted Wales. It has a capacity of 82,000.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
UK rugby CEO defends Twickenham rebrand to Allianz Stadium
Rugby stadiums in Wales, Ireland and Scotland are now branded with commercial names as are many southern hemisphere stadiums
London — England’s Rugby Football Union (RFU) boss, Bill Sweeney, has defended the decision to rebrand Twickenham as the “Allianz Stadium” in a 10-year, £100m deal, saying the bigger question was why they did not do it earlier.
The national rugby stadiums of Wales, Ireland and Scotland are now branded with commercial names, as are many southern hemisphere stadiums, and Twickenham, England’s home since 1910, has followed suit with changeover of signage already under way.
“I think it’s really encouraging for the game when you have a company like them [German insurance group Allianz] investing in rugby union in England,” Sweeney told journalists following August’s announcement of the rebranding plans.
“They have branding naming rights across seven other stadiums around the world, they are passionate about rugby from the top down, they’ve got experience in stadium redevelopment so that helps us for our [development] plans for Twickenham 2027 and they are providing a significant investment over a multi-year period which is coming into the game.
“They’ve been very clear from the outset that they want to see a certain amount of that activity targeted at the community game.”
Asked if the RFU “had to do it” given the money involved, Sweeney said: “You wouldn’t want to walk away from a very significant investment with a partner which shares similar values and similar passions for the game.
“The question is ‘why didn’t we do it earlier? Why haven’t we had a naming-rights partner sooner?’ But it’s a really good deal, good for the game.
“They’re doing it for the right reasons — the vast majority of the people we interact with understand it’s the right deal for the game. You’ll get certain resistance for traditional reasons, that’s wholly understandable, and there’ll be a period of time where it takes time to adjust.”
Twickenham, named after the area of London in which it was built in 1907, held its first rugby international in 1910 when England hosted Wales. It has a capacity of 82,000.
Reuters
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