National Rugby League side Canberra Raiders sponsor Huawei extended its major sponsorship of the club for a further three seasons until the end of '19.
Huawei joined the Raiders as major sponsor in '12 and is one of the longest running major sponsors in the NRL. The new three-year deal will see Huawei remain on the front of the Raiders jersey for a total of eight seasons by the time the new deal concludes at the end of '19.
The two organizations work closely to assist in raising thousands of dollars for a number of charitable organizations (Raiders). In Canberra, Chris Dutton wrote almost everyone "had written the Canberra Raiders off." Fast-forward six months and the club is "humming on the field" after securing a A$1M ($762,000) sponsorship bonus. Huawei told the Raiders at the start of the year that it would not seek to extend the partnership, but the company's execs "backflipped in June and wanted to buy into the lime green revival." The three-year deal until the end of '19 is understood to be worth close to A$1M per season and gives the Raiders off-field stability. Raiders CEO Don Furner said, "Huawei were looking like going elsewhere, but they've committed to a new deal for three years. I was absolutely over the moon when they changed their mind" (CANBERRA TIMES, 8/21).
