After nine years of major sponsorship, Chinese tech giant Huawei is pulling the plug on its deal of sponsoring the NRL’s Canberra Raiders.
Huawei said it has been financially crippled by the Federal Government’s 5G ban.
Huawei Australia has been the Raiders’ major sponsor for a decade, and last year signed a new deal which had been due to run through until the end of the 2021 season.
On Monday morning, the Chinese company announced it would pull out at the end of this NRL season instead.
The decision is a big financial blow to the Raiders, who will now have to search for a new headline sponsor in a time of global economic turmoil.
Huawei Australia’s Jeremy Mitchell said the company had been badly hurt by the Turnbull government’s decision to lock it out of Australia’s 5G network in 2018.
“Unfortunately Huawei has been caught in the middle of a great trade war. The effect on our business is greater than we expected,” he said.
“This is a direct result of the 5G ban and the negative business environment at the moment for Chinese companies in Australia.”
Chinese telecom giant Huawei announced on Monday it is ending its oldest major sporting sponsorship deal in the world when it ends its contract with the Canberra Raiders after nine years, blaming a “continued negative business environment.”
Australia has barred the world’s largest maker of switching gear and a major smartphone brand from involvement in crucial national communication infrastructure in recent years, while China has ratcheted up pressure for an Australian policy reversal.
Huawei Australia’s chief corporate officer, Jeremy Mitchell, said it was “so disappointing that it has ended this way but are very proud of the small role we have played in this great NRL club”.
“We are very proud of our major sponsorship of the Raiders and the fact that it lasted for almost 10 years shows how successful the partnership has been,” he said.
“Even after the Turnbull government banned us from 5G we managed to find the resources to continue the sponsorship but we just can’t financially support it any longer.”
Huawei will end its financial backing of the Raiders at the end of the current NRL season on October 25 instead of the two years it signed with the Raiders until the end of the 2021 season.
“The continued negative business environment is having a larger than originally forecasted impact on our planned revenue stream and therefore we will have to terminate our major sponsorship of the Raiders at the end of the 2020 season,” a Huawei statement said.
Huawei’s landmark decision to sponsor the team in 2012 came months after the government banned the company on security grounds from involvement in the rollout of Australia’s National Broadband Network in 2011.
The sponsorship was seen as an attempt to improve Huawei’s public image in the eyes of lawmakers and senior bureaucrats who barrack for the Canberra team.
“However, the continued negative business environment is having a larger than originally forecasted impact on our planned revenue stream and therefore we will have to terminate our major sponsorship of the Raiders at the end of the 2020 season,” it said.
“Huawei would like to thank the Raiders Chairman and Board of Directors, club management, coaching team, players, and fans who have always welcomed and supported Huawei.
“We are proud to have played a role in this great team and believe that our shared values have underpinned the success of this partnership.”
The Huawei logo will be re-located to the back of the Raiders jersey and Huawei will retain naming rights of the new Huawei Raiders Training Centre in Canberra.
Don Furner, Canberra Raiders CEO said “the Canberra Raiders and Huawei have enjoyed a fantastic partnership for nearly a decade they have been by far our longest-serving major sponsor.
“Huawei’s commitment to the Raiders has been unwavering and we have worked together to achieve so much for the Raiders family, Rugby League itself, and the broader community with our charity work,” he said.
“This relationship has been about so much more than just a logo on a jersey, we have worked with Huawei on a number of very important community initiatives and fundraising opportunities for very worthwhile causes.”
“We are very sad that they will be stepping back as the major sponsor of the Raiders but we are very proud of all that we have achieved together and we hope we can finish this season off successfully.”
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