World Rugby and Emirates have announced an extension of the Dubai-based airline’s long-standing relationship as a Rugby World Cup Worldwide Partner.
Under the agreement, the leading airline will continue as a Worldwide Partner of Rugby World Cup 2023 in France and Rugby World Cup 2027 in Australia.
Emirates is also extending its official sponsorship of the Emirates World Rugby Match Officials through to 2027, a relationship that has proven pivotal in the development and performance of elite match officials since 2013.
As the Official Airline of Rugby World Cup France 2023 and Australia 2027, Emirates will bring its leading expertise in customer experience to help deliver a truly world-class tournament for fans travelling to the host nations.
Emirates has twice daily flights to Dubai from Dublin and flies to 139 destinations around the world.
Its investment in the sport as a Worldwide Partner will help support rugby’s development in both emerging and established markets, while fans will be able to watch every moment from each Rugby World Cup live and on-demand from their flight seats, making the sport more accessible.
Following the success of the award-winning ‘Whistle Watch’, a World Rugby content series presented by former international referee Nigel Owens and sponsored by Emirates, the two partners will continue to create innovative content to immerse fans into the world of match officials and inspire young referees to pick up the whistle, while making rugby’s laws more accessible
“We are delighted to announce the extension of our long-term and successful collaboration with Emirates for the next two men’s Rugby World Cups and in support of our men’s and women’s match officials programme,” said World Rugby Chair Bill Beaumont.
“Emirates’ global network and passion for our sport will be key in our efforts to make rugby truly global and their proven excellence in customer experience will be an asset to take our fan services to the next level.”
“Rugby is a sport with great values and a proud heritage in many countries,” added Emirates President Sir Tim Clark.
“It is also a sport that’s attracting more participation and interest across communities each year as we are seeing in the UAE where rugby just made it into school programmes nationwide. We see rugby as a great platform to bring people together under a shared passion for the sport.”
“Emirates has been a proud sponsor of Rugby World Cup since 2007. France 2023 also coincides with Emirates’ 30 years of flight operations to Paris, Charles de Gaulle and considering we now have 31 weekly flights to France, Emirates is looking forward to flying in fans to watch the world’s best teams competing for the Webb Ellis Cup.”
By renewing as a Worldwide Partner of Rugby World Cup, Emirates joins Societe Generale, Mastercard, Asahi, Capgemini and Jaguar Land Rover in the global family of Worldwide Partners for Rugby World Cup 2023. Emirates also becomes the fourth Global Partner of World Rugby, joining Capgemini, Macron and HSBC.
