Aviva Sponsors Premier Rugby’s On Demand ePlayer

In December Aviva signed a deal to sponsor the Premiership Rugby channel on video-on-demand online broadcaster ePlayer.

The sponsorship includes a branded channel header, sponsorship spots and pre-roll advertising, and will be available online across more than 600 websites worldwide, including News International properties and Yahoo.

The deal was brokered between Aviva’s retained media agency, ZenithOptimedia, and digital sports specialist Perform.
Heather Smith, head of sponsorship at Aviva, said: “Due to our strong presence at the forefront of domestic rugby union, the decision to sponsor the ePlayer Premiership Rugby Channel was a very apt fit for us.”

Robert Gold, planning manager at ZenithOptimedia, said: “Aviva are a pioneer in their field and their new association with arguably the leading domestic rugby competition in the world is a good fit. The sponsorship deal with Perform provides another platform for Aviva to reach a highly defined and engaged audience around official rugby content.”

In July 2010 Aviva became the headline sponsor of the rugby union Premier League in a four-year £20m deal. The deal, which gave Aviva competition naming rights in addition to other benefits ranging from perimeter advertising to ticket competitions, saw the insurance brand became the lead sponsor, replacing Guinness which had been associated with the rugby union premiership since 2005.

One of the lures for Aviva to sign up to the deal was the fact that research suggests rugby is the fastest-growing participation sport in England with more than 100,000 active adult players – and another 150,000 under the age of 19. The runs until 2014 and will include more than 135 games each season – watched by 1.7 million people at the grounds and many more on Sky, ITV and ESPN.

Aviva will further expand  us to extend its grassroots programme designed to encourage young people to get involved in sport. The 12 rugby clubs in Aviva Premiership Rugby will commit 15,000 man hours to work with 36,000 pupils at 600 primary schools in England, as well as providing them with equipment and teacher training.

Links:

http://www.premiershiprugby.com/

http://www.aviva.co.uk/rugby-sponsorship/