South Africa
Emirates pivots rugby presence to EPCR
Emirates, a major supporter of rugby union worldwide, is to sponsor European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), replacing regional rival Qatar Airways in the airline category.
FNB deepens SA Rugby links as MTN successor
SA Rugby has announced First National Bank (FNB) as the new front-of-shirt sponsor of the Springboks in an expansion of the bank's deal with the South African rugby union federation
SA Rugby says goodbye to MTN after eight years
SA Rugby will undertake a complete overhaul of the Springboks' sponsorship structure after the governing body announced the end of its front-of-shirt deal with telco MTN
Emirates ends decade-long Lions sponsorship
The iconic Ellis Park in South Africa is searching for a new naming rights sponsor as Emirates exits its agreement with both the rugby stadium and United Rugby Championship (URC) side The Lions.
Macron expands cricket remit to South Africa
Macron has strengthened its investment in cricket with a five-year deal to manufacture kits for Cricket South Africa (CSA), replacing fellow Italian sportswear firm Lotto
Ackerley revives SA Rugby investment bid
US private equity fund Ackerley Sports Group (ASG) is to pursue a new deal to secure the commercial rights to South Africa’s Springboks rugby team and could work with a rival local bid that scuppered i…
SA Rugby rejects private equity offer after rival bid
The South African Rugby Union has rejected a proposal from US-based Ackerley Sports Group (ASG) to invest in its commercial rights after details of a bid from a domestic consortium were made public.
Jury’s out at MultiChoice South Africa
Marc Jury is to depart as chief executive of MultiChoice South Africa in March, after almost a decade with the leading sub-Saharan African pay-television group
Investment strategies top SA Rugby, World Rugby agendas
South African Rugby is close to finalising the sale of part of its commercial rights to an American investment firm, while World Rugby is also looking to tap private money to grow the sport in the US.
SuperSport, SABC strike late PSL sublicensing deal
The South African Premiership will remain on free-to-air television during the 2024-25 season after a late sublicensing deal was struck between rights-holder SuperSport and public broadcaster the SABC.
CSA signs Dafabet as national team shirt sponsor
Cricket South Africa has unveiled online gambling company Dafabet as a shirt sponsor of its international teams, adding to a separate agreement it has with rival firm Betway for its franchise league, SA20.
SA Rugby to launch ‘watershed’ women’s league
South Africa Rugby has detailed plans to launch a new women’s club competition with up to 150 centrally-contracted players, with the league potentially debuting as early as next year.
SABC looks to rival Openview satellite service
South African public broadcaster the SABC has requested proposals for a partner to help it launch its own satellite television broadcasting service to challenge Openview, the main free-to-air satellite operator in the market.
Betway replaces DStv as PSL title sponsor
Gambling firm Betway has today been announced as the new title sponsor of South Africa’s Premier Soccer League in a three-year deal worth around R900m (€45m/$49m).
IMG Arena wins new business with CSA rights
The embattled IMG Arena has doubled down on cricket, striking an exclusive betting rights deal with Cricket South Africa in a rare piece of announced new business since the merger with the Endeavor-owned OpenBet.
SA government steps in to quell South African rugby row
South Africa’s ministers for communications and arts and culture are to attempt to resolve the conflict between MultiChoice, eMedia, which owns free-to-air satellite platform Openview, and public-service broadcaster SABC.
Amul’s USA Cricket, CSA deals continue team sponsorship strategy for ICC events
Indian dairy brand follows Cricket World Cup team deals by joining forces with co-host USA Cricket, and Cricket South Africa, for T20 World Cup.
EMedia gains interim relief in MultiChoice battle over sports rights access
EMedia states it is "satisfied that our perseverance to stop MultiChoice’s anti-competitive behaviour has paid off" following the Competition Tribunal ruling.