Rugby: MTN (telecom) becomes main shirt sponsor of South Africa (2017-2020)

MTN, a South African telecom company, has become the main sponsor of SA Rugby and the shirt sponsor of the South Africa rugby union team, said the South African Rugby Union on 09/06/2017. The three-year deal began with the first appearance of the MTN logo on the Springboks shirt during their test match against France (37-14) on 10/06/2017.

The agreement is estimated to be 50m South African rands (€3.5m as of 12/06/2017) per year according to local media who announced the expected MTN deal on 26/05/2017. MTN succeeds the South African telecom and technology group Blue Label Telecom, the main sponsor of the South African XV shirt during the 2016 season.

The agreement was made possible since Vodacom, the South African subsidiary of the Vodafone telecom group and a competitor of MTN , agreed to "step away from its sponsorship rights of the Springbok team to allow SA Rugby to negotiate with other telecommunications companies. Vodacom has been a proud and loyal sponsor of the Springboks since 1994 and held the exclusive rights in the telecommunication sector. Vodacom will continue to…