Warriors chase new sponsor

March 16, 2009

Warriors chase new sponsor

Posted by Editor on March 16, 2009 10:33 AM | 11 comments | Print | E-mail author

Glasgow Warriors’ main sponsor, FloGas, will end its three year relationship with The Biggest Team in Glasgow at the end of this season.

FloGas has enjoyed exposure on the jerseys of Glasgow’s only professional rugby team since 2006, a period which has seen the team achieve some of their most notable victories both on and off the field.

Despite FloGas choosing to end their backing, Warriors chief executive Ian Riddoch remains positive that Glasgow Warriors is an attractive proposition for any organisation seeking exposure right across the continent.

He said: “Firstly, I’d like to thank FloGas for their support over the past three years as the Warriors have continued to grow. This is a fantastic club to be associated with and an exciting, competitive team to watch.

“We are a fairly unique product in Scotland as we are one of only two professional rugby teams in the country and we perform every year in two of European rugby’s top competitions, the Magners League and the Heineken Cup.

“Attendances are continuing to rise and we have a squad that is constantly improving so I’m confident that we are a hot property when it comes to sponsorship. Therefore, as I seek a new partner for the coming season and further ahead, I remain confident that we have the right attributes to satisfy clients in what I fully understand is a challenging economic climate at the moment.”

Not only did the Warriors finish in their highest ever position in the Magners League last season, they have also claimed the scalps of some of European rugby’s biggest sides to establish themselves as serious contenders for domestic honours.

Now in their second season based at, Firhill, which they share with Irn-Bru First Division football club Partick Thistle FC, the Warriors have seen crowds steadily increase.

The annual 1872 Cup derby matches against inter-city rivals Edinburgh, which were this year sponsored by David Lloyd, have seen a 75% increase in attendances, mostly thanks to an improved match schedule and a ticket initiative based around the Bank of Scotland Corporate Autumn Tests.

Looking ahead, the Warriors have already secured the services of Scotland and British & Irish Lions scrum-half Chris Cusiter who has signed with the club until 2012. They have also signed Scotland international centre, Rob Dewey, whilst retaining some of their top names such as Thom and Max Evans.

The current 36-man Glasgow squad boasts 19 full internationalists from all over the world. A total of 14 players have represented Scotland, 20 players have represented the Scotland ‘A’ team and 11 have played for Scotland 7s, including the current captain, Colin Gregor. The Warriors squad also contains the highest point’s scorer in Magners League history, Dan Parks, and the current Magners League top try scorer for season 2008/09, Thom Evans.

Glasgow Warriors are already active in seeking a main sponsor for next season and beyond.

Posted by AJ Patterson on March 16, 2009 01:58 PM | Reply to this comment

Good luck in getting a new sponsor. I think I'd like to see one of two types of firms:
- well established local brands like Irn Bru or Tunnocks
- large employers in the city like Esure or Direct Line.

If the latter, there's a big potential to link it into employee motivation. You simply can't take staff out to a football match here - half of them wouldn't like the team you chose (i.e. really not like it). Meanwhile, with the rugby they can see Scotland players in action and it's for the whole of the city. You could link it into player promotions e.g. Employee of the Month gets to meet Thom the week of the game. This is a win-win as if people come along once, they are likely to come again, boost attendances, boost revenue etc.

Just a thought....

Posted by vicki on March 16, 2009 10:01 PM | Reply to this comment

The problem with the likes of Esure (HBOS?) and Direct Line (RBS) is that in the current climate, sponsorship activity is way down the list of priorities. Companies any larger than this have global marketing strategies which rule out "local" marketing agreements that may or may not be on-message.
A deal with Barrs would be phenomenal (haha, geddit?), but in the current climate I suspect we'll accept any offers!

Posted by AJPatterson on March 23, 2009 09:05 AM | Reply to this comment

Not so sure. Esure is a joint venture between its founder and HBOS. RBS were looking at selling Direct Line but it was so successful they changed their minds. Both are semi-independent from their parent firms and will have their own marketing budgets.

Glasgow has really become the major UK centre in General Insurance, and is picking up a lot of administration jobs generally. Unit costs are 40% lower than in London, plus with the fall in Sterling this is now a very cost effective place to administer international business. (Or indeed make things for that matter).

Posted by vicki on March 23, 2009 12:43 PM | Reply to this comment

I'm sure no one is interested in a debate about insurance in Glasgow, but I have a bit of experience in the industry and believe both Direct Line and Churchill will be affected by their parent company's failings. Predicted job losses for the Group are not taking the banking / insurance split into consideration. But anyway, back to rugby...

Posted by s153 on March 16, 2009 02:34 PM | Reply to this comment

"perform" in the HC and ML needs to be qualified....yes we play in these tournaments, but in the whole we perform "poorly", our performance is lamentable. No matter how riddoch "dresses" up the warriors, the stats do not lie.

Posted by Alan on March 16, 2009 05:49 PM | Reply to this comment

Yes .. 33 26 does not lie! :)

Posted by Osama bin Hidin on March 16, 2009 02:45 PM | Reply to this comment

Perhaps Sir Fred Goodwin might like to donate part of his pension pot?

Posted by Derek on March 16, 2009 02:49 PM | Reply to this comment

s153,

I can see where you are coming from in terms of us not performing that well in these competitions, but what do you honestly want Riddoch to say in this type of situation?

What marketing or sales department in any walk of life, particularly sports don’t overstate the appeal of their product when selling it to would be customers or investors?

Sometimes the guys in charge just can't win with some of the fans.

Posted by lineens weegie army on March 16, 2009 05:13 PM | Reply to this comment

What we could really do with is a sponsor that puts in the same kind of effort Tennents do in their sponsorship of the National Football team - just think how many TV or Radio ad's they've screened, how many Saltires with tennents in the middle are in pubs in Glasgow ect.

OK, were never going to get that level of support, but something similar on a lesser scale would be fantastic.

Posted by Big Blue on March 18, 2009 02:08 PM | Reply to this comment

We used to have a wonderful sponsor, Caledonian Brewery. In fact, they won "Sports Sponsor of the Year" for their efforts. But the SRU binned them.

Posted by gnasher on March 20, 2009 01:11 PM | Reply to this comment

What about Buckfast? Good strong links with Glasgow.