New Zealand Rugby is reportedly attempting to sell its entire portfolio of jersey sponsorship rights to an overseas investor, in a deal that could bring in hundreds of millions of dollars.
According to the New Zealand Herald, NZR is in the process of selling off sponsorship rights of jerseys including the All Blacks, Black Ferns, both men's and women's sevens teams, the Māori All Blacks and the Baby Blacks under-20s side.
The report also states that a single investor would be purchasing those rights for a figure of "more than $300 million," and that "a major US or Japanese advertising agency" could be the most likely benefactor.
The agency would then be able to on-sell the rights for companies to buy on a given jersey.
The news would be welcome relief to the cash-strapped New Zealand Rugby, already in dire financial circumstances following the withdrawal of former sponsor AIG. That deal was understood to be worth $120m over five years between 2016 and 2020.
NZR also posted a financial loss of $7.4 million for 2019.
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