The British & Irish Lions announced Mud House Wines will become an official sponsor of the '17 tour to New Zealand. The brand, made by the U.K.'s largest wine supplier, Accolade Wines, has grown to become the fifth largest New Zealand wine in the U.K (Lions Rugby). THE DRINKS BUSINESS's Lauren Eads reported Accolade confirmed it would be investing £2M ($2.8M) to support the campaign in the U.K., with "its team in New Zealand set to continue its efforts in New Zealand ahead of the Lions tour" in June '17. Accolade Wines has in addition "confirmed sponsorship of all Southern Hemisphere rugby coverage," to be broadcast on Sky Sports UK throughout '16. This includes the Super Rugby, The Rugby Championship, The Mitre 10 Cup (New Zealand) and The Currie Cup (South Africa). Accolade Wines Marketing Dir Amy White said, "To support this Sky Sport sponsorship, we have filmed a set of new Mud House idents, starring five legends of rugby who have either played for, or against, the Lions. Sean Fitzpatrick (New Zealand), Jason Robinson (England), Gavin Hastings (Scotland), Shane Williams (Wales) and Paul Wallace (Ireland) all feature with the strapline; 'Rugby and Wine -- It’s as clear as Mud' playing on the not so obvious relationship between wine and rugby in a premium yet jovial way" (THE DRINKS BUSINESS, 3/9).
