The new European Rugby Champions Cup, the successor to the Heineken Cup, is set to be sponsored by ... Heineken.
It has been reported in the Rugby Paper that the beer giant will pay around £4 million per year to be associated with the new competition. They are the first major brand to be announced as an official ERCC sponsor.
The competition's promoters, European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR), are hoping to secure sponsorship from a total of five major companies to bring in £20 million per year, twice as much as when Heineken was the sole supporter. Allianz and Turkish Airlines are known to be interested.
EPCR are expecting £25 million from French TV rights, in addition to the £28 million agreed with BT Sport and Sky in Britain. Other international TV deals are expected to net a further £14 million.
