The Virgin Australia Supercars Championship has welcomed a range of new and renewed partners ahead of the Clipsal 500 Adelaide to open the 2017 season.
Southern Cross Austereo, ALM Bottle-O and a soon to-be-announced fuel supplier join long-time partners of the sport who have renewed in 2017 including ARMOR ALL, WD-40, MTAA Super and PIRTEK, in what is set to be Supercars’ strongest year on record.
Naming rights sponsor Virgin Australia will also introduce a Supercars Travel program in 2017 to complement its strong commitment to the Championship across the next 5 years.
Supercars will beam into a record number of homes this season, with new broadcast deals in Asia and Europe to increase the sport’s global profile to 300 million viewers. Television coverage is set to surpass 5000 international broadcast hours.
Attendances, television ratings and digital audiences continue to climb. The media rights deal with Foxtel, Fox Sports, News Limited and Network Ten is bringing Supercars into an unprecedented number of Australian households as the country’s third most watched sport.
Supercars Managing Director Matt Braid said partners recognise the opportunities the sport provides as it increases its broad and diverse audience while always looking for new, innovative ways to connect sponsors with fans.
“We are very proud to have fantastic and enduring relationships with our Virgin Australia Supercars Championship partners,” Braid said.
“As one of this country’s highest profile sports we offer a fantastic platform for our partners to leverage through our substantial audience, Australia-wide major events calendar and our broad, diverse and passionate fan base.
“These ingredients ensure great returns for those who support the world’s best touring car Championship.”
PIRTEK’s backing is significant with the brand holding naming rights to the PIRTEK Enduro Cup, which grows in stature each year, recognising the most successful driver pairing through prestigious endurance events Sandown 500, Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 and Gold Coast 600.
MTAA Super is the Official Superannuation Fund of Supercars – a partnership which commenced in 2013 – and Pirtek continues as the Official Hose Supplier.
PIRTEK also supports DJR Team Penske; while MTAA Super utilises superstar driver Craig Lowndes as an ambassador.
ARMOR ALL continues to support the ARMOR ALL Pole Position and ARMOR ALL Qualifying naming rights for 2017, taking the partnership to an incredible 14 years.
WD-40, for the third consecutive year, holds naming rights for the Phillip Island event, which this season hosts two 250km endurance races, complementing the release of a new range of WD-40 products in 2017.
Kenworth has also renewed for three years until the end of 2019, Coca Cola continues as the official Non-Alcoholic Beverage of the Supercars Championship, AVIS is locked in as Official Hire Car Partner until the end of 2018, and Pulsar as the Official Watch Partner.
The Supercars season begins this week with the Clipsal 500 Adelaide running from March 2 to 5.
