Digicel sponsorship to be replaced?

Digicel sponsorship for the Fiji Rugby Union expires at the end of this year. With 6 months to go, negotiations for a major sponsor will already be under way. There is no better timing than this to be negotiating a sponsor.

Winning the IRB sevens this year would have put the FRU in a stronger negotiating position. But there is still time as the PNC finishes 23rd of June and the Sevens World Cup is on 28th to 30th June. To attract an excellent sponsor we need to win these two tournaments - full stop. The Junior World Cup is underway and a semifinal achievement would be a bonus.

An improved monetary sponsor is critical as I would like to see our sevens players get contracts for next years IRB sevens series. No rotations. No trialling players. Just get a core group of players, contracted for 2 years and let them play the tournaments. We can introduce 1 or 2 new players but a core group should be maintained. Consistency, combination and a body accustomed to sevens rugby physiology is necessary.

New Zealand has employed this strategy and their results are outstanding. Even though the All Blacks won as many tournaments (two) as Fiji  in 2012/2013 IRB sevens season, they appeared in 7 out of 9 finals.

The IRB sevens series is the key in the short term to Fiji's rugby success. Our Flying Fijians XV rugby team is not playing enough tier one tests to generate enough interest on a major sponsorship deal. On the hand the Fiji Sevens team plays over 60 games a year in 9 countries. We also need a sponsor that is worldwide and can utilise the multinational appearance of our Sevens team. Vodafone comes to mind.

The New Zealand Rugby Union in recognising this potential extended the All Blacks name to their sevens team. This was done during the negotiations phase for a new sponsor in the middle of 2012. The resulting AIG sponsorship deal in dollar value is a secret but the sevens team performance in the last decade was obviously a boost to their negotiation.

NZRU CEO Steve Tew said:

"From Las Vegas to Dubai, the Sevens team plays in more places, more often than the All Blacks. The next season extends from October to May and will be longer in coming years as more tournaments are added. As well, the Olympics provides a fantastic new opportunity on the biggest sporting stage in the world.

Imagine the All Blacks silver fern proudly on the chests of our Sevens team at the Rio de Janeiro Olympics in 2016. There is no greater place to showcase to the world the All Blacks.

Sevens is critical to Fiji in the short term. We need to win the 2013/14 IRB sevens series. Does this mean 15's is not important? Not it is, but it will take a while for us to move up the ranking and be at where Samoa is. While we are working our way up the rankings in 15's, the Sevens code is where we can compete and retain our sponsors.

The Flying Fijians have started well and their ranking has improved from 14 to 13 and we hope that they stay on track to winning the PNC. Things will become clearer at the end of June. What an exciting month for Fiji Rugby this is.