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4 hours ago
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This weekend saw the inaugural weekend of the Premiership Women’s Rugby for their 2025/26 season, as eight of the nine teams battled each other across the country.
As this new season launches, the sports equipment and apparel brand Canterbury of New Zealand has been officially announced as sponsors for the league, continuing their support of women’s rugby after initially coming on board last year.
What does their sponsorship mean?
The brand has committed to supplying every player within the PWR with Canterbury boots, as well as an additional piece of kit.
The athletes playing in the PWR number more than 450 across all nine of the clubs. Each player will be fitted with a boot suited to their position and tailored to their measurements, improving the quality of infrastructure and support that the women’s game relies on.
How does this affect women’s rugby?
Ellie Kildunne, of Red Roses and Rugby World Cup winning fame, highlighted the brand’s sponsorship last year as “an important moment for the sport. Women’s rugby is growing faster than ever, the renewal of the partnership is absolutely the right thing at the right time for the game”.
This kind of financial and practical support is incredibly important for a sport that is still emerging and developing like women’s rugby.
Not only does it equip the athletes with the best chance of success and prevention of injury, but the calibre and visibility of the partnership also acts as a wider demonstration of the respect that the sport demands - and deserves - to be given.
As the top women’s rugby league in the UK - and one of the best regarded internationally - this partnership demonstrates a renewed promise to continue to expand and invest in women’s rugby, which is something that has been much spoken about in the aftermath of the Women’s Rugby World Cup.
There is an awareness within the women’s rugby community that the momentum currently attached to the sport, after the biggest World Cup ever, is something that needs to be continuously fed, and such a high profile sponsor like Canterbury is undeniably a positive step on that journey.
Genevieve Shore, the Executive Chair of the PWR, cemented this association, saying that “To have a brand of their calibre so excited about extending their partnership with the PWR is a sign of how our league continues to go from strength to strength.
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