SINGAPORE – New Zealand rugby hero Dan Carter, kicked off MasterCard’s Worldwide Partnership with Rugby World Cup 2015 in central London yesterday. To celebrate the partnership the world’s leading points scorer and MasterCard ambassador fine-tuned his kicking on the River Thames by kicking at London’s biggest set of rugby posts, Tower Bridge.
MasterCard will be the Preferred Card and Official Payment System of the highly anticipated tournament, which takes place in England and Wales between September 18th and October 31st. The announcement continues a highly successful partnership between MasterCard and Rugby World Cup Limited, which began ahead of Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand.
Ann Cairns, President of International Markets of MasterCard Worldwide said: “We are delighted to be extending our partnership with Rugby World Cup, which takes place right here in England in 2015. Rugby World Cup is a truly priceless event for rugby fans around the world and we are looking forward to developing ways that we can bring this partnership to life for our cardholders and partners in 2015.”
Dan Carter said: “Kicking from the middle of the River Thames was special but the ultimate priceless experience will be pulling on my All Blacks jersey at Rugby World Cup 2015. I’m really looking forward to working with MasterCard to give priceless experiences to fans for Rugby World Cup.”
Brett Gosper, Rugby World Cup Managing Director said: “We are excited to be renewing our highly-successful partnership with MasterCard, a globally renowned brand, a world leader in the payments technology sector and a true supporter of Rugby worldwide.
“Asia is one of the fastest-growing Rugby markets and with 60 per cent of the world’s youth is a major focus for a sport that continues to reach out, engage and inspire the next generation of players and fans. Boosted by record investment by the IRB thanks to the success of Rugby World Cup and Rugby Sevens’ inclusion in the Olympic Games, participation in China has grown by 30 percent in the past three years, with Sri Lanka and India also on strong growth curves,” he concluded.
As part of the agreement, MasterCard secures a comprehensive rights and benefits package that allows the company to deliver value to customer financial institutions, merchants and cardholders, including the ability to access ‘Priceless’ experiences linked to Rugby World Cup 2015.
