Six Nations Rugby and NatWest announced a one-year sponsorship agreement that will see NatWest take on the naming rights for the 2018 Six Nations Championship. The agreement will result in the '18 championship being named the NatWest 6 Nations. As one of the family of brands owned by RBS, the agreement extends Six Nations Rugby's partnership with the business. NatWest has for the last five years supported more than 700 community rugby clubs across England and Wales via NatWest RugbyForce (Six Nations). In London, Chris Cutmore reported the deal will "cause embarrassment" for the tournament's organizers. The Six Nations "attempted to cut ties" with RBS, its sponsor for the previous 14 tournaments, by seeking new investment worth £100M ($131M) over six years. Six Nations CEO John Feehan said in January, "We want a sponsor who is actively engaged not just in Britain, but around the world." But after execs failed to find anyone "willing to pay" £17M ($22.3M) per year -- the economic uncertainty surrounding Brexit has been cited as an explanation -- the Six Nations was "forced to go cap-in-hand back to RBS," which is understood to have "sealed a deal for several million pounds less than they originally offered last year" (DAILY MAIL, 11/8).
