Guinness Uganda has officially announced its groundbreaking partnership with rugby sides Kobs, Rhinos and Warriors.
The announcement was made at a press briefing that took place in Jinja during the annual Guinness Fun Rugby tournament that is currently ongoing.
The brand is taking on the sponsorship of the three clubs and making Legends Rugby Grounds in Lugogo and Pitstop Sports Lounge in Jinja the homes of Guinness Rugby for the next three years.
Guinness is a brand synonymous with rugby and the multiple-partnership deal worth over Shs400m a year, demonstrates the brand’s commitment to supporting rugby in Uganda.
Speaking at the press briefing, Uganda Breweries Head of Beer, Matilda Babuleka, reiterated the importance of the partnerships.
“Guinness is committed to growing rugby in Uganda as seen through our sponsorships and partnerships over the years. We have sponsored several tournaments like the Guinness Sevens, the Guinness Fun Rugby that we are witnessing and enjoying today and extended support to the national Sevens team, the Rugby Cranes. We are now deepening our support to benefit the actual stakeholders of the game; that is – the clubs, the players and the fans,” said Babuleka.
The partnership is inline with Guinness’ ongoing Black Shines Brightest campaign that celebrates luminaries in sports and the creative spaces.
“As the teams and players will directly benefit from this sponsorship, Guinness is empowering them to shine brightest on the field. Most importantly, we want the fans of the game to have the best matchday experiences when they come to support their teams, so this partnership is very important to us,” she added.
The partnership will see the brand inject UGX400M each year for the next three years.
Guinness is renowned for its support of rugby worldwide as they are involved in some of the biggest tournaments like the Guinness Six Nations Championship.
Locally, the brand has had ties with rugby since 2007 after taking over from sister brand Bell Lager to sponsor the then Rugby League.
It has also worked with the Rugby Sevens League; titled the Guinness Rugby Sevens, and sponsored the Sevens national team.
The brand has also curated fun matchday watch-party experiences for rugby fans including the recently concluded Rugby World Cup screening and the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Challenger series; efforts that have brought the game closer to the fans.