New & noteworthy sports partnerships
A look at some of the new, noteworthy and unexpected brand, strategic, media and commercial partnerships in Australian sports
AFR reported that Commonwealth Bank is set to be unveiled as the first major sponsor of the Brisbane Olympics, in a deal expected to be worth $200 million
North Melbourne FC announced a new 2-year partnership with global footwear brand HOKA, which signed on as the club’s Official Athletic and Lifestyle Footwear Partner, and the official partner of The Huddle (the club’s community arm)
Sydney Swans announced Nike as the club’s official apparel and footwear partner across its AFL, AFLW, VFL, QBE Sydney Swans Academy and ARA First Nations Academy teams - The ‘one club’ partnership was launched at Coogee Beach and celebrated with an event at the Coogee Pavilion
Gold Coast SUNS welcomed Australian brand PILLAR Performance as the club’s new Official Sports Nutrition Partner
Hawthorn FC has teamed up with Kiva Wellness, which became the Club’s Official High-Performance Partner - As part of the collaboration, Kiva Wellness’ branding will feature on the apparel of Hawthorn’s high-performance staff, as well as across LED signage at UTAS Stadium
Collingwood FC secured a 2-year partnership extension with Bowens across its AFL and AFLW programs
Melbourne Storm and Hostplus extended its long-standing partnership through to the end of the 2028 NRL season, which will take the partnership to a remarkable 23 years
Chemist Warehouse unveiled a major new partnership with LIV Golf Adelaide, signing on as the Official Pharmacy for the next 2 years
Geelong Cats announced a 6-year partnership extension with SC Technology Group, continuing a collaboration that has spanned over 12 years - Under the new agreement, the Geelong-based business will continue its support for the team’s operations and community initiatives
Vegemite unveiled a new partnership with Australian sprint sensation, Gout Gout- the announcement took place in Gout’s hometown of Ipswich, and on the same oval where he first ran
Port Adelaide and co-major partner KFC extended their longstanding relationship which will take it to a decade - The 5-year extension will see KFC remain across the back of the club’s AFL and AFLW guernseys, as well as on training shorts, game-day activations and Port Adelaide’s digital platforms
Sydney FC signed a new Premium Partnership with Mega Rewards, which will see the rewards platform become the back-of-shorts partner for both the Sky Blues A-League Men’s and Women’s teams for the remainder of the 2025–26 season
GIANTS Netball announced a new 2-year major partnership with Specsavers, whose branding will feature prominently on the back of the GIANTS’ dress, alongside match‑day activations and community and game day engagement initiatives focused on eye health awareness
Formula 1® Australian Grand Prix welcomed Campos Coffee as an Official Event Supporter which will serve its specialty coffee across the 4-day race weekend
World Surf League announced a new 3-year partnership with Breitling, which will become the Official Timing Partner of the WSL Australia for the upcoming Bonsoy Gold Coast Pro at Snapper Rocks
World Surf League secured a 2-year partnership extension with Bioglan, which will continue to support across the Australian leg of the competition
NSW Waratahs announced a new 3-year partnership with Guinness through to the end of 2028 - Guinness will feature prominently across Waratahs matchdays, and fans will be able to enjoy Guinness at Allianz Stadium and across key venues alongside the Waratahs official pub, the Woollahra Hotel
Western Force welcomed Snap Fitness as an official partner - the brand will be seen on the coaches’ polos and within the coaches’ box throughout the 2026 season
SportsLink Travel was appointed as the official sports travel provider for Water Polo Australia which will see it manage travel logistics for all Water Polo Australia teams and events through to the LA 2028 Olympic Games
HART Sport will continue as the naming rights partner of the HART Premier Netball League for a further 4 years after the sporting equipment company renewed its partnership with Netball Queensland through to 2029
bp Adelaide Grand Final announced Valvoline Global as an Official Partner of Australia’s largest domestic motorsport event and the REPCO Supercars Championship Grand Final - This 4-year partnership puts Valvoline at the heart of the on-track and fan experience, including naming rights to the iconic Chicane Grandstand
Collingwood FC’s Nick Daicos was announced as Musashi’s newest ambassador
Adelaide 36ers secured a new 2-year extension with Foodland through to the end of the NBL28 season, which will continue to be the club’s Official Supermarket Partner as well as being a Club Community Support Partner
Husqvarna signed on as an Official Partner of the upcoming Australian women’s golf majors that will feature major championship winner Minjee Lee and Grace Kim
South Sydney Rabbitoh, Cameron Murray met up with skaters Sean Malto, Chloe Covell and Paige Heyn for a jumper / deck swap, ahead of SLS Sydney
NRL confirmed that New Zealand will host its first-ever State of Origin match next year at Eden Park, Auckland - The Australian Rugby League Commission made the announcement alongside the NZ Government and Auckland Council
Kane Cornes completed an 18km run from Scarborough to Optus Stadium as part of Channel 7’s State of Origin Countdown and to raise money for Telethon - Revo Fitness donated $50k which will go towards helping sick kids across the state
LIV Golf Adelaide drew more than 115,000 fans across the week - the highest attendance of any golf event in the nation, and the largest crowd for a LIV Golf tournament anywhere in the world
NAB AFL Auskick launched its season at Balloon Story, where 3100+ balloons were constructed (taking 60+ hours to create) to bring a larger than life NAB AFL Auskick display - the event celebrated 20 years for NAB as the naming rights partner
SANFL extended its long-standing partnership with the Seven Network securing a new long-term broadcast agreement that ensures live and free coverage
ABC secured the rights to the VFL following Seven Network’s decision not to renew
ESPN announced a multi-year agreement with ONE Championship, the world’s largest martial arts organization, which will make ONE events available exclusively via ESPN in Australia and New Zealand
AFL, in collaboration with the WA Government and WA Football, announced that all profits from ticket sales of AAMI AFL Origin will be allocated into a new initiative - the Origin Community Fund which will see more than $1 million invested into grassroots football and regional development
The Australian revealed that Global management consulting firm McKinsey has been commissioned by the ICC to conduct wide-ranging review into the future of cricket
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New & noteworthy sports partnerships
The Australian sports partnership landscape is constantly evolving, and brands are entering into new, deeper, more integrated collaborations built around culture, data & AI, audience engagement and experiences.
This article takes a look at some of the new, noteworthy and unexpected brand, strategic, media and commercial partnerships in Australian sports…
The WNBL’s new partnership with SEPHORA points to some new trends in women’s sport, and who is choosing to invest
Last week, the WNBL announced Sephora as a partner of the League’s MVP Awards Night, and that it will join the competition as a Foundation Partner and Official Beauty Partner in the WNBL 2026/27 season.
Some broader context…
1. Basketball appears to be a strategic global platform for Sephora
Sephora’s has a high-profile partnership witk breakaway women’s basketball League, Unrivaled, focused on enhancing the player experience and identifying meaningful ways to integrate beauty into the league’s daily ecosystem - Signature activations include:
Sephora Glam Room
Sephora Tunnel (below)
Glam support for players
2. The WNBL’s commercial profile is strengthening
The WNBL is proving to have an increasing ability to attract major, category-leading brands that see real value in women’s sport - Sephora’s new partnership with the WNBL marks the brand’s first-ever entry into Australian sport.
Since Wollemi Capital Group and the NBL acquired a majority interest in the League in 2025, it has attracted new and renewed deals with major partners, including:
Hungry Jack’s
Latina™ Fresh
AAMI
Ford
Minor Hotels
Paywise
Sephora
Reebok
Last week, two-time WNBA All-Star and global Reebok ambassador, Angel Reese, travelled to Sydney and Melbourne to promote her signature “Angel Reese 1” sneaker line -Coinciding with this, the WNBL announced a new partnership with Reebok which became the league’s Official Footwear Partner.
3. Beauty’s integration into sport is accelerating
As the Official Beauty Partner and the Official SPF, MECCA recently went big at the Australian Open - activating multiple activations sites across Melbourne Park - this included a custom-built, three-storey MECCA Pro Shop.
Related: How brands are leveraging AO26 (part 2)
From sponsorships & endorsements, broadcast integrations & advertisements, product development & sampling, matchday integrations and experiential activations, beauty brands are carving out a powerful.
Related: Beauty’s growing presence in sports
AI partnerships are emerging in Australian sports e.g. IBM and Salesforce
Technology is being increasingly injected into sports via partnerships with startups, and tech giants like Amazon, Microsoft, Meta, Google, IBM and Salesforce.
At the heart of many of these partnerships are common drivers - data and artificial intelligence. Why? Because sport generates a remarkable amount of data (onfield, at the game, across screens) and sports and their partners in Australia and across the globe are becoming more sophisticated in how they capture it, and extract value from it.
Related: Advancing sports with data and artificial intelligence
Perth Bears x IBM
In late 2025, the Perth Bears and IBM announced a landmark Australian-sporting first collaboration where the NRL club and global technology giant will work together on AI and digital innovation.
Under the collaboration, IBM will work with the new NRL franchise to deploy cutting-edge technology and build tailored AI-powered solutions ahead of the team’s 2027 kick-off.
For 30+ years, IBM has partnered with some of the world’s most iconic sports to help deliver world-class digital experiences.
IBM’s AI capabilities are enhancing digital & broadcast fan experiences, and streamlining the operations of some of the world’s biggest sports.
Related: IBM’s AI capabilities
LIV Golf x Salesforce
In mid-2025, LIV Golf and Salesforce entered into a new strategic partnership underpinned by ‘Agentforce’ (Salesforce’s digital labor platform) and AI - the partnership is helping the League:
Supercharge fan engagement via the ‘Fan Caddie’ - delivering dynamic, real-time LIV Golf updates tailored to each fan’s journey - curating content, highlights, and tournament experiences based on location, preferences, and behaviors
Enhance golf broadcasts and digital content in real time - delivering predictive shot outcomes, optimal golf strategies, contextual stats, and narrative cues directly in LIV Golf broadcasts
Optimise tournament operations and sponsorship - e.g. Equipment logistics to staff coordination, unlocking new commercial opportunities through advanced audience segmentation, smarter sponsorship alignment, and real-time impact reporting
Elevate global expansion efforts - Coordinating international operations, localising fan engagement, and surfacing insights to drive global growth
Empower player experience on and off the course - assisting with personalised wellness tracking, and providing real-time performance insights and recommendations
Athlete-creator-led partnerships and brand activations
The line between athlete and creator is increasingly blurred. Today’s athletes (and former ones) aren’t just competing on the field, they’re producing content, building audiences, and monetising their personal brands across digital platforms.
Related: The rise of the athlete creator
Brands and rights-holders are increasingly recognising the power of athletes. For example…
Gatorade unveiled a new event in the lead up to Formula 1, with Dan Gorringe
After becoming the official partner of Formula 1’s sprint races in a wide-ranging new 5-year deal with PepsiCo, Gatorade unveiled ‘Gatorade Run The Track’ - A first-of-its-kind running event set to take place during Formula 1 Qatar Airways Australian Grand Prix 2026 race week. The event will give everyday runners the chance to run the iconic Albert Park Circuit, alongside creator’s and athlete’s including the brand’s ambassador and “Chief Hydration Officer”, Dan Gorringe.
Some other recent athlete-creator activations worth noticing include:
Travis Head and The Inspired Unemployed’s Matt ‘Falcon’ Ford teamed up to produce a skit to promote Better Beer and Liquorland
Pat Cummins teamed up with the ‘schoonerscorer’ to promote his Mountain Culture Beer Co brand at a pub in Sydney’s Surry Hills
Athlete-owned brands are sponsoring sport
Athletes are no longer purely acting as ambassador’s for sponsors, they’re owning them.
Tennis player-owned brands leveraged the Australian Open 2026
Dash Diamonds - In the lead up to AO26, Croatian tennis star Donna Vekic launched DASH a luxury jewellery brand positioned as “diamonds that play.” Coinciding with the launch, she also opened an official on-site store at the tournament and launched an AO x DASH collection that includes 3 x tennis bracelet designs.
Waterdrop - Is owned by the likes of Novak Djokovic, Taylor Fritz, Elina Svitolina, Sebastian Korda, Andrey Rublev, Hubert Hurkacz, and Cameron Norrie, many of whom act as both brand ambassadors and investors. In 2024, The Australian Open (Tennis Australia) announced a multi-year partnership with Waterdrop.
On - In 2019, Roger Federer invested $50m for a 3% stake in the company (now worth ~$500m) and it sponsors elite players who competed at the AO such as Iga Swiatek, Ben Shelton and Joao Fonseca
This theme is spreading across other sports…
Barry’s has entered into sports sponsorship
Barry’s, a low-carb alcoholic beverage brand founded by Bailey Smith, Charlie Curnow, Nick Daicos and Josh Daicos:
Partnered with the Santos Tour Down Under in Adelaide
Became the Official Vodka and Agave Partner of Supercars for the 2025 and 2026 seasons
Oakley Car Park Climb - a unique event with a suite of well-aligned brand partners
The Oakley Car Park Climb is a festival-style cycling event staged inside a multi-storey Wilson Parking facility in Adelaide as part of the Santos Tour Down Under.
The event, which has been labeled on social media as “The most ridiculous race in the world 🤯” and “The most raring race of the season” transforms an everyday car park into a high-energy race venue where participants sprint up multiple levels under lights, music and a party atmosphere.
The event has become a staple of Santos Tour Down Under summer nights, and has attracted a variety of partners which includes:
Oakley
Red Bull
Wilson Parking Australia
Rapha
Knog
Wilson Parking Australia is not only a sponsor, it hosts the event.
Rexona is flipping the traditional sponsorship model on its head
In 2026, Rexona, (Unilever) is taking a a different approach to sports partnerships by producing its own sporting property ‘RIVALS’ - a new 8-part sports entertainment series launching March 1st on Kayo and Fox Sports, that brings together elite players from Rugby League, AFL and Rugby Union (e.g. Reece Walsh, Scott Pendlebury, Monique Conti and Joseph Suaalii) to compete for their respective sports in a battle to determine which is the ultimate code.
Developed from the ground up as a fully-branded production, RIVALS represents a major evolution in how Unilever engages with Australian sport, shifting from traditional sponsorship into original entertainment creation that spans broadcast, social and retail (via Woolworths nationally).
Instead of leaning-in to its individual athlete sponsorships with the likes of Nathan Cleary, Max Gawn, Dylan Alcott and Sam Kerr, or sponsoring an existing property, Unilever has taken a bold step by creating its own sports entertainment platform, in partnership with a suite of well-respected agencies:
Octagon (creative, concept development, event and activation, talent management)
WPP Motion Entertainment (audience and distribution platform)
Ronde Media (production)
Foxtel Group (platform, streaming and social)
Mindshare (media strategy)
Thinkerbell (earned)
Wonder (event execution of launch press conference)
Sports are partnering with outdoor media
Sports are increasingly turning to out-of-home media to extend audience reach beyond broadcast and owned channels, with partnerships.
QMS’ alignment with the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games, and oOh!media’s relationship with the Australian Open (which has spanned 4 years so far) are some recent examples that shows how premium sporting IP is being amplified across high-traffic urban environments.
QMS x Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games
Following the success of its Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games network, where it delivered:
An audience reach of 11.5 million Australians
81,478 pieces of real time breaking news content during across both Games
…QMS is building on its official partnerships with the Australian Olympic Committee and Paralympics Australia for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games.
Its out-of-home network has played an active role throughout the Winter Olympic Games by:
Showcasing Australian medal moments in real time
Reinforcing broadcast schedules to daily commuters
Creating timely, high-impact environments for brands to activate and extend the value of their official Olympic partnerships e.g. Allianz
In late 2025, QMS announced its Winter Games Network inventory was sold out with Nine advertisers getting on board. More recently, Nine, the official broadcast partner of the Winter Olympics, announced that it was acquiring QMS. This is set to help Nine create a more unified commercial and distribution proposition for sponsors to activate official sports rights, extending campaign reach and frequency, and building stronger brand associations.
Sports partnerships in Australia are becoming more strategic and sophisticated
Although the above examples appear different on the surface, the common theme’s are that they’re focused on aligning to, and leveraging sports, maximising fan engagement and delivering shared value creation.
Related: New & noteworthy sport partnerships (previous article)
2XU - Global CRM Manager
2XU - Head of Wholesale - ANZ
adidas - Manager, Omni-Channel Marketing Activation (12-Month Contract)
AFL - Functions Coordinator
Amer Sports - Sports & Community Marketing Manager
Australian Sports Commission - Communications and Social Media Coordinator
Auto & General - Sponsorship Manager
Athletikan - Co-Founder
Bastion - Managing Director - Experience
Bastion - Senior Client Manager
Bastion - Strategic Partnerships Director
Bastion - Strategy Manager
Betfair Australia - Campaign Specialist
Bursty - Project Manager
Brand Collective - Sales Manager - Reebok & Champion
Brisbane Bullets - Corporate Partnerships Manager
Brisbane Bullets - Corporate Hospitality Manager
Brisbane Lions - Commercial Development Manager
Carlton FC - Retail Team Lead
Collingwood FC - Campaign Coordinator
Collingwood FC - Club Integration Manager
Collingwood FC - Partnerships Digital Lead
Cricket Victoria - Media & Communications Manager
ClassPass - Field Account Executive - Brisbane
Delaware North Australia - Manager Event Planning, MCG
Easygo - Senior Product Designer - Sportsbook
Easygo - Sponsorship Executive
Entain Australia & New Zealand - Senior Creative Designer
Foxtel - Producer - Fox Sports
Gemba - Account Director
Hostplus - Partnerships & Events Specialist
IRONMAN, Oceania - Live Content & Production Manager
KOJO - Sports Presentation Producer
LSKD - Head of Merchandise Planning
Manly Warringah Sea Eagles - Digital Content Producer
Maurice Blackburn Lawyers - Sponsorship and Campaigns Lead
Melbourne FC - Media Coordinator (Mat-Leave Cover)
Melbourne Park - Venue Manager - John Cain Arena
MKTG Sports + Entertainment Australia - Senior Brand & Communications Strategist
New Balance - Digital Marketing Coordinator
NRL - Group Revenue Manager
NBL - Senior PR Lead
Netball NSW - Consumer Business Manager
Netball NSW - General Manager - Community & Events (6 Month Contract)
News Corp Australia - Sports Reporter
Nike - Director of Stores, Pacific
Nike - Lead, Account Marketing Sporting Goods/Sport Specialty Pacific
Nike - Lead, Integrated Media
Nike - Senior Professional, Stores & Partner Marketing Pacific - Jordan APLA
North Melbourne FC - Media & PR Manager
North Melbourne FC - Senior Events Manager
Octagon - Senior Analyst
Picklebet - CRM Campaign Lead
Pixellot - Regional Commercial Partnerships Manager
Red Bull - Head of Sports Marketing
Revo Fitness - Events & Activations Manager
Rugby WA - Communications & Marketing Coordinator
South Sydney Rabbitohs - Partnerships Manager
Sportsbet - Insights Analyst
Sportsbet - Product Manager
Sports & Entertainment Ltd - Hospitality Sales Executive - Rugby Australia Hospitality
Sports Entertainment Network - Campaign Implementation Manager - Maternity Leave Contract
Sports Entertainment Network - Commercial Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Commercial Manager - Ballpark
Sports Entertainment Network - Head of Commercial
Sports Entertainment Network - Head of Operations - Ballpark
Sports Entertainment Network - Events & Administration Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Partnerships Coordinator
Sports Entertainment Network - Partnership Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Senior Partnership Manager
Sports Entertainment Network - Strategy & Solutions Manager
Surfing NSW - Digital Lead
St Kilda FC - Graphic Designer
Sydney Swans - Fan Growth Lead
Tabcorp - Communications Advisor
Tennis Australia - New Business Development Lead
TGI Sport - Event Manager (Fixed Term or Contractor)
TGI Sport - Senior Retail Manager
Touch Football Australia - Digital Services Coordinator
Touch Football Australia - Growth Manager - Tasmania
Toyota Material Handling Australia - Sponsorship and Events Manager
Western Bulldogs - Head of Consumer
Wheelchair Rugby Australia - Partnerships Lead
WPP Media - Brand Partnerships Manager
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