Samsung The SA Sponsor of the World XV Rugby Team
JOHANNESBURG – South Africa, May, 30, 2014 – Samsung Electronics, the world’s leading consumer electronics brand, has announced that the South African subsidiary is the sole sponsor of the World XV Team. The World XV is a composite rugby union team, comprised of international and top players from around the world.
Sport has always been an aspect of pride for South Africans. The current national coach has also stated that preparation is a key success factor on the road to international competitions, valuable for both the team and the individual players who don’t always get the opportunity to test themselves against the world’s finest players. Samsung, upon request of South African Rugby Union (SARU), has agreed to sponsor the World XV, as the Springboks launch their training campaign in preparation of the World Cup 2015, and are set to kick off their international season in Cape Town against the World XV on Saturday, 7 June at Newlands Stadium.
“As a sponsor of the World XV, Samsung is not only associating its global brand with a global team, but assisting our National Team in their preparation for this season’s Rugby Championship. The World XV team includes some of the best players from around the globe and will offer a unique opportunity for the Springboks to compete against a world-class team. We want to show our support, in this way and give back to the millions of South Africans who have supported us as a brand,” says Mr Sung Woo Han, Vice President and Managing Director of Samsung Electronics South Africa.
Of the 23 players invited for this Samsung-sponsored World XV team, there are a number of South African players, who have been released by their international clubs to play in this match. The squad will also feature players from Australia, New Zealand, France, England, Ireland, Samoa, Tonga and Georgia giving it a truly global flavour. The players, who have been selected for the World XV match are all very experienced and in good form making them worthy opponents for the Boks.
The World XV will be coached by former Springbok player and coach, Nick Mallett. He commented: “Samsung is one of the world’s biggest global brands and we are delighted that they have agreed to sponsor the World XV team for the match against the Springboks at Newlands on the 7th June.”
Mallett continued, “We are extremely proud to be associated with such a prestigious brand providing us with excellent business building opportunities and joint promotional activity and we look forward to developing the relationship with Samsung.”
“This is an almost unique opportunity to see an international team playing in South Africa with the freedom of not needing a certain result,” said Jurie Roux, CEO of the South African Rugby Union (SARU). “We’ve all watched on TV those festival-style games in the European winter where great players combine their talents to produce some stunning rugby and provide a real challenge to the SANZAR (South African, New Zealand and Australian Rugby) nations on tour. We’ve now got one of those games on our doorstep. We’re very excited about the players who will be turning out against the Boks at Newlands and we’re very thankful to Samsung for making this occasion possible. Samsung is a relative newcomer to our sponsorship family but they have already become very good friends of rugby.”
The game, on 7 June 2014, is a non-test match but promises to be a thrilling experience for the up to 48 000 passionate fans at the Newlands Stadium, and will further be televised to more than a billion viewers in over 40 countries.
“Samsung believes in the power of sport to unite people from all walks of life. Through this sponsorship we are eager to ignite passion and real South African enthusiasm for the game, enhance the consumer experience, across multiple platforms while building relevant connection points that resonates with consumers’ interests and draws passionate followers,” Han concludes.
This match will be broadcast on DSTV SuperSport, 7th June 2014, 16h00 – 19h00.
About Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. is a global leader in technology, opening new possibilities for people everywhere. Through relentless innovation and discovery, we are transforming the worlds of TVs, smartphones, tablets, PCs, cameras, home appliances, printers, LTE systems, medical devices, semiconductors and LED solutions. We employ 286,000 people across 80 countries with annual sales of US$216.7 billion. To discover more, please visit www.samsung.com.
About the World XV Team
The World XV is a composite rugby union team, comprised of international and top club players from around the globe. Membership is by invitation and the only qualifications considered when issuing an invitation are; that the player’s rugby is of a good enough standard and secondly that he should behave himself on and off the field. There is no discrimination whatsoever by race, colour or creed.
About the South African Rugby Union
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) is a voluntary association of the 14 provincial rugby unions in South Africa and is responsible for the promotion, development and support of all levels of rugby in the Republic. To that end, SARU manages and administers eight national teams, among them the Springboks, Under-20s, Springbok Sevens and Women’s teams, as well as running ten tournaments such as Vodacom Super Rugby and Absa Currie Cup.
[Photo by Anton Geyser]
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