Ampol has announced a new partnership with the National Rugby League (NRL) to be the naming rights sponsor of the State of Origin.
Ampol and the NRL have agreed to a naming rights partnership until the 2023 State of Origin Series, including Women’s State of Origin from 2021.
The Ampol State of Origin will make history on November 4 when the first stand-alone series kicks-off in Adelaide for the first time.
Adelaide will add to Origin’s growing national footprint which has already expanded to Melbourne and Perth.
Ampol managing director and CEO Matt Halliday says State of Origin’s brand and national audience is the perfect place to showcase the revitalisation of the iconic Ampol brand nationally.
“Ampol is a proud Australian company with a long history of playing a positive role in economies and communities across the country, including through support for elite and grassroots sport,’’ Halliday says.
“As we transition our national retail network to Ampol over the next two years, this new partnership with the NRL will reignite old and new customer connections with our iconic brand.
"State of Origin’s position as the pinnacle of rugby league and one of the biggest events on the Australian sporting calendar also aligns with our own commitment to return Ampol as Australia’s number one fuel brand.”
NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo says Australia’s biggest sporting brand was the perfect platform for Ampol to relaunch its return to the Australian market.
“We’re delighted Ampol has joined us as naming rights partner for Australia’s biggest rivalry, State of Origin. There’s no bigger or more watched television program than Origin and this year we will expand into Adelaide for the very first time,’’ Adbo says.
“Ampol is an iconic brand in Australia, so many Australians grew up with Ampol in their neighbourhoods and remember the long history Ampol has with our game.”
Ampol’s new partnership with the NRL will be led by sports marketing agency TLA Worldwide, who is working closely with Ampol on its sponsorship activity as part of the re-brand process.
TLA general manager – Sydney, Richie Butterworth says the business was proud to have the opportunity to assist an iconic Australian brand like Ampol through such an "exciting" phase.
“We have worked closely with the Ampol team this year to evaluate a number of partnership opportunities to support the brand re-launch. Sport is one of Australia’s great passions and something that unites us, so it provides the perfect platform for Ampol to connect with Australians young and old," Butterworth says.
"With many great partnership opportunities out there for Ampol to consider, we have used our business’ 25 years of industry knowledge, alongside data and independent analysis to match the Ampol brand strategy and brand goals with key partnerships. We’re looking forward to bringing the NRL partnership to life.”
Last year’s State of Origin series opener was the most watched sporting program of the year drawing a total of 3.23 million viewers. Game two and three drew a total of 2.84 million and 2.91 million viewers respectively.
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