One of the last areas of sport into which commercial involvement was previously restricted will give way next Saturday when the iconic jersey of the New Zealand All Blacks will carry a front of jersey sponsor for the first time.
American Insurance Group (AIG) will be the logo to break the mould, and the hearts of some New Zealand fans, despite being only one third the size permitted under international rugby rules.
Beer brand Steinlager featured for some years in the 1990’s on the side of the shirt but even the three stripes of Adidas, whose deal is considered the most lucrative in the sport, were not put on the shirts in their 13 year involvement.
The deal with AIG will run for five and a half years, putting it on the same cycle as the renewed deal with Adidas and will include the next Rugby World Cup in England in 2015.
The deal also covers all other New Zealand representative teams including the All Blacks Sevens, the Maori All Blacks, the New Zealand Black Ferns, the New Zealand Women’s Sevens and New Zealand Under 20 teams.
Teama are permitted to wear the logo on jerseys in official competition in rugby, unlike soccer where its use on international shirts is restricted to replicas, training gear and promotional engagements.
Insurance companies have faced anger in New Zealand in recent years as concerns have emerged over their responsiveness to the earthquake tragedies that rocked the country and forced major reconstruction of homes, businesses and communities.  This sponsorship is seen as an expensive gamble that an association with the most potent symbol of the nation will help to rebuild emotional affinity as well as the bricks and mortar.
Executives will take heart from the acceptance of the Quatar Foundation sponsorship of Barcelona football club.  They had also previously resisted front of shirt sponsorship before gently breaking public reluctance by carrying the charity logo of Unicef.
The financial muscle of Quatar was initially seen as a step too far by fans but now is generally accepted within two seasons of its debut.
The New Zealand Rugby Union insists it conducted extensive stakeholder research before confirming the decision with the shorthand decision being that if a shirt sponsors was needed to ensure that the sport could maintain its position of world dominance then it was a price willing to be paid.
As with any sporting team however, success is never guaranteed and with the All Blacks already the holders of the Webb Ellis Trophy, any falling away of standards or performance will demand some form of scapegoat.  AIG have just put themselves in line to be just that.
“Prominently associating the AIG brand with the legendary All Blacks and the highly competitive and successful New Zealand Rugby Union teams, as well as passionate rugby fans around the world, represents a tremendous opportunity for AIG, the NZRU, and rugby,” said Bob Benmosche, AIG’s president and CEO. “We are extremely honoured to be the All Blacks’ newest front-of-jersey sponsor and excited by the benefits that come with the teaming of two world-class franchises. Rugby is popular around the globe and growing rapidly in the United States, and the top rugby nations align with regions where AIG is strongly represented and is targeting growth.”
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