THERE'S A GLASS AND A HALF IN EVERYONE
Giving a Cheer to Cadbury Mondelēz International, who yesterday committed to a six-year sponsorship deal with the Wallaroos, mirroring their long-term partnership of the Wallabies.
As a champion for women's sport, and having led the commercial strategy for Wests Tigers successful NRLW admission, I understand first-hand the significant economic & social role Corporate Australia has to play in bridging the gap of gender inequality.
In our case, we fortunate enough to have support from a fantastic 'sweet' of partners Zurich Australia Brydens Lawyers KFC South Pacific (Yum! Brands Subsidiary) Fab Industrial Logistics, equally committed to delivering on our vision of support, advocacy, and development for women's Rugby League - at all levels - both on & off the field.
But not all codes, nor teams, are created equally...
Take Rugby Australia's Sevens program - recognised as one of the most elite full-time and fully professional women’s sports programs in the country - and which has achieved remarkable success for more than a decade. Compare this to last August when Wallaroos players collectively called out Rugby Australia for a lack of investment and promotion of the women’s 15-a-side game.
In the same vain as the catchy Industry SuperFund ads - Compare the Pair. Same code, Same gender. Different investment, Different outcomes. The moral of the story: "If you build it they will come"...and it appears they certainly are!
This latest deal comes off the back of growing investment by Rugby Australia in the women's game: with an additional $3 million of funding in 2024, appointment of the team's first ever full-time coach, and aspiration for full-time women's players by time of the 2029 Women's Rugby World Cup in Australia.
Rugby Australia CEO Phil Waugh referenced this during the Cadbury partnership announcement, noting "we all saw the power of a home World Cup in another sport last year and going deep into the tournament...I think we need to aspire to that [professionalism by 2029], I think that as I said, to perform in 2029, you’ve got to be investing now. The more we can invest into the women’s game particularly with that growth within the community part of the game for female participants... ideally we can accelerate to full-time Wallaroos as quick as we can.”
Obviously, a lot has been said about the state of Rugby in this country, but the time to invest is now. Green shoots are emerging - new leadership with strong governance principles, a strategic reset aimed at revitalizing the sport, key high-performance appointments across all national teams, investment in grassroots community programs, and a sold out Lions Tour - all ready to turn to gold in time for a decade of major Rugby events set to unite and excite all Australians.
Talk about a "glass and a half for everyone"!!!
#GenderEquality #BridgeTheGap #InvestInWomensSport #GoldenDecade
This is awesome!