NBL includes club scene in NRU sponsorship
Rugby
To qualify and thoroughly prepare for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia has been declared a shared goal.
The Namibia Breweries Limited on Tuesday announced its sponsorship of N$3 million to the Namibia Rugby Union in support of various programs leading up the 2027 Rugby World Cup, to be held in Australia.The senior national men’s team, which in recent years wore Windhoek Beer branding on their test jerseys, has been a central focal point of the NBL’s input into the Rugby Union.
Namibia’s upcoming test matches against The Netherlands and Portugal on 6 and 13 July – a short nine weeks from now – should be momentous occasions, as the first home internationals in Windhoek since Kenya’s Rugby World Cup qualifying visit six years ago (August 2018).
The SA Rugby Union has excluded Namibia’s Windhoek Draught Welwitschias from competing in the Currie Cup First Division this year, which would have been beneficial to the preparation for the international season.
Towards the end of July, Namibia is also scheduled to contest the Rugby Africa Cup tournament in Uganda.
The NRU’s vice-president for rugby matters, Johan Diergaardt, said a part of the NBL’s sponsorship is set aside for Namibia’s cost of hosting these two internationals, but money is also invested into the local club game and other developmental programs.
“The involvement of NBL in these initiatives are pivotal not only for the advancement of rugby within Namibia, but also for promoting our sport on the international stage.”
Diergaardt said contributions to club’s travel costs during domestic and regional leagues, as well as prize money to league winners; the participation in the just ended Rugby Africa’s Under-20 Barthes Cup in Harare, contributions to the expenses of referees, the NRU’s hosting budget for internationals and the NRU’s annual and club forum meetings are among the other aspects pointed out in the allocation of funds.
TO STRENGTHEN
Tasneem Klazen, marketing manager at NBL, said: “This fruitful and mutually respectful partnership has really come a long way over the last seven years. Our objective has always been for Namibia to qualify for the Rugby World Cup and our national team has really shown great passion at the two tournaments during this time (Japan 2019 and France 2023).
“To qualify and thoroughly prepare for Australia 2027 is a shared goal, to which we remain committed. Our sponsorship this year is aimed towards the continued growth of rugby and to encourage a culture of excellence, a strong rugby community, helping young players advance and to field a strong national team which the country can be proud of.”