In the final instalment of our four part series looking at the off-field performance of the four Rugby Union provinces we caught up with Connacht Rugby Head of Commercial and Marketing Alex Saul on what the present and future look like for what has traditionally been the smallest of the four provincial teams…
The headlines dejectedly point to their being no Irish province in the quarter finals of the Champions’ Cup since 1998 following Ulster’s missing out on Sunday. Out West though Connacht fans just keep their heads down and get ready for the heightened awareness coming their way as they prepare for their own knock out campaign in the Challenge Cup.
A trip to Grenoble in the second week of April could set up a semi final appearance against London Irish and the spotlight will be on the star players like Robbie Henshaw and Ultan Dillane in a way that has never been quite so bright.
There is a real sense that Connacht are matching the on field performance by playing an ambitious game off it as well. A great start to the season in the Guinness Pro12 was crowned in November when the side went to Thomond Park wearing a SuperHero kit inspired by DC Comics’ Green Lantern. If you set yourself up as a hero you have to deliver and Connacht left Thomond with a 18-12 win under their belts, their first there in nearly 30 years.
“Our kit partners BLK have been imaginative with other teams around the world blending sport and something a bit special,” said Connacht Rugby Head of Commercial and Marketing Alex Saul.
“This was an idea we liked straight away and so did the fans. It was the biggest pre-order sale of a rugby jersey ever with Lifestyle Sports and that could never have been imagined for Connacht in previous years.”
In fact the province is making a habit of creating new milestones.
“Our commercial income in the current cycle will be 50% ahead of where we were and merchandise sales are also up by 43%,” added Saul.
“We have aligned with the West of Ireland and put ourselves forward as the sporting embodiment that unites a real sense of place.”
“NUI Galway are our partners in the Connacht Rugby Academy and we are keen to build long term partnerships with brands that see the strategic benefit of being aligned with the West.”
Heading the Guinness Pro12 into December was a proof point of how the province and the team can be competitive at the highest level and we are building on that with new partnerships off the field, a number of which will be announced in the coming months.”
The province already list 20 partners from Lifestyle Sports on the front of the shirt through Mazda who were previously there and stayed on in a new capacity as the relationship developed, BLK, Heineken, Coca Cola and a range of local partners keen to associate themselves with the West of Ireland.
In many ways this is the space that has been the preserve of the Galway Races for many years. People who have upped sticks and moved to the US, the UK, Europe and further afield have always turned to Ballybrit as an embodiment of their heritage in a sporting context. Now there is an alternative, or perhaps an additional means of ‘flying the flag.’
Read our interview with Enda Lynch on the commercial world of Munster Rugby in 2016
“We have built a strong focus on creating content that fans can share across local and national boundaries and our focus is on building a fan base that is diverse in terms of geography but inured in the way it can get behind our team.”
We are creating a tent pole for the West of Ireland and building relationships with brands that can make that work locally and further afield.”
Read our interview with Paul Dermody on the commercial world of Leinster Rugby in 2016
The fan base for games at the Showgrounds does not have the same potential as in the other three provinces but Connacht is keen to play to its strengths in the virtual world as well, fittingly for a region traditionally at the centre of Irish emigration.
Promotion in the corporate are focuses on the 5,000 hours of TV coverage a year across six continents; the average TV audience of 200,000 and the 50,000 plus followers on social media.
Read our interview with Fiona Hampton on the commercial world of Ulster Rugby in 2016.
In the same way as the team have until now been playing by tradition in the second of Europe’s major club competitions, so too is Connacht angling itself as a challenger, an underdog, and a flag bearer for the West.
It’s a game they are playing well and the coming months will see a greater emphasis on the team and the province that has long been the case.
It looks as though they are ready to make the step up.
