With an exciting season of international rugby ahead, global pizza brand Papa Johns has launched a multi-year partnership with England Rugby

With an exciting season of international rugby ahead, global pizza brand Papa Johns has launched a multi-year partnership with England Rugby. 

The deal will see Papa Johns become the naming rights partner of England Rugby’s new men’s and women’s Community Cup competitions. Now named the Papa Johns Community Cup, the competitions will focus on providing a boost to adult community club rugby across England ending with the ultimate prize of a showpiece finals day at an iconic venue. Papa Johns will play an active role in supporting the competition with pizza giveaways for community clubs.

To launch the new partnership, Papa Johns and England Rugby teamed up with a number of players from community clubs at Trafford MV RFC in Manchester, to discuss the season ahead and the growing anticipation for kick-off of the new competition format.

The new men’s format will see a reduction in the travel for most clubs, an improvement in the player experience and suiting the lifestyle of the current player. The cup will take place at the end of the season, so regardless of how a club has done in the leagues, there is still a chance at silverware.

Henry Gong, men’s captain of Burnage Rugby Club, said, “It’s very exciting, the competition around here is fierce anyway so to put up a new competition in the north-west makes it a bit more local for everyone. More local rivalries make better Saturdays, so it’s great.”   

Trafford MV RFC, women’s captain, Kate Hamilton added, “Every sport needs funding, it’s hard to get travel to faraway places, so for things to be close by is great when you know you’re not going to be under pressure to source anything or have to fundraise to get there. Alongside the league, it’s really nice to have something to get involved in.”

Papa Johns will debut with the Red Roses during the September Internationals and will be first seen at Twickenham during this season’s Autumn Nations Series where England’s men will take on Argentina, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa in November 2022.

Throughout the partnership England Rugby fans will have the chance to win merchandise, the chance to watch their heroes with ticket giveaways, and even a Papa Johns concession at Twickenham, serving up delicious slices to supporters on matchday.

Speaking about the announcement, Liz Williams, Chief International Operating Officer, commented, “We’re absolutely thrilled to announce this partnership with England Rugby, we know it will be a fantastic opportunity for Papa Johns to support the grassroots game all over the country for adults of different levels. With a brand-new competition format just announced, we’re sure that community rugby in England will continue to go from strength to strength and show the difference that rugby can make to local communities.”

We’re excited to be part of this journey and cannot wait to engage with England Rugby fans at Twickenham for what is sure to be an excellent set of Autumn Nations Series matches.”

This latest announcement comes as part of Papa Johns growing commitment to supporting grassroots sport in the UK via its other rugby partners Scottish Rugby, Welsh Rugby Union, and Leicester Tigers.

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