World Rugby has signed up event services company GL Events group as the first tournament sponsor of the 2023 Rugby World Cup.
The deal will grant the company global exposure through an activation programme which will include in-stadium visibility at all 48 matches played during the tournament.
In addition, the Lyon-based GL Events group will provide its services to help facilitate the running of the competition, which will take place across France.
Claude Atcher, Rugby World Cup France 2023 chief executive, explained how the deal signifies the ongoing sponsorship strategy for the tournament.
He said: “We are delighted to be able to share GL Events’ entire experience to make Rugby World Cup France 2023 a memorable success that will leave a lasting impression on people’s minds and on society.
”This is the meaning given to our official sponsorship programme, which aims to engage our partners beyond rugby, and which will be further strengthened in the coming weeks.”
GL Events has an extensive history of involvement with major sporting events in France, including the 1998 Fifa World Cup, Uefa Euro 2016 and the 2018 Ryder Cup. It also has significant experience in rugby, having worked on the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand.
In October 2019, World Rugby re-appointed IMG as its exclusive commercial partner agency for the next Rugby World Cup cycle through to the 2023 tournament.
Under the new agreement, IMG continues to represent the sale of the tournament’s top-tier Worldwide Partner programme and overall commercial advisory services across the four-year cycle.
World Rugby chairman, Sir Bill Beaumont, said today (Friday): “The appointment of one of the world’s leading event services companies underscores the prestige of a Rugby World Cup 2023 tournament in France that is generating unprecedented commercial interest.”
The 2023 Rugby World Cup will begin on 8 September and it will be the tenth edition of the tournament.
