Latest news with #RobCalder
BBC News
19-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
The mind behind cricket's Hundred on his 'Prem' relaunch
The Premiership may be losing seven letters next season, but Rob Calder hopes it will gain much the top flight's chief growth officer, is the man snipping the competition's name to simply 'the Prem' for next change comes with a new logo – a shock of orange to reflect the intensity of the action – and fresh branding promoting the physicality, athleticism, collisions and confrontations on the pitch."There was definitely an issue with the Premiership brand in that it felt quite corporate and establishment," says Calder."It didn't feel like an entertainment product and that's what we're trying to address now with this new identity."This league is not broken, it is actually flourishing - we just need to reframe ourselves a little bit to make sure we can reach those wide audiences and grow."In repositioning rugby, Calder hasn't looked outside the box, but into the octagon."If you look at sports that are growing in this country, it's basketball, it's NFL, it's mixed martial arts and there's a singularity to a lot of those brands," he adds."Think about UFC. There's a real sort of punchiness. There's a dynamism and a lean forward and we really like that. We thought we could do it our own way though."The reaction when the new branding was unveiled before Saturday's final was mixed. It often is with these that is perhaps the point - the existing audience is not the target. Calder wants to expand the league's appeal and convert the indifferent. A record 1.26m television audience for Bath's victory, combined with demand outstripping supply for the 82,000 tickets, suggests the Premiership is nurturing new has been big growth in engaging supporters between the ages of 18-34, while Red Bull's reported interest in buying Newcastle Falcons would tie in perfectly with a parallel aim of attracting youth-orientated is a brief Calder has worked to he arrived in rugby, he was the commercial director for the Hundred, the neon-spattered, slog-heavy cricket format that launched in 2021 and raised more than £500m with the sale of its franchise sides earlier this was revolution. In rugby, Calder is aiming for evolution."With the Hundred, we were clear that a distinctly new approach was going to be critical to get to the next generation," he says."When I did research on the Hundred though I looked at rugby clubs and how they compared in terms of appeal to younger audiences and they actually performed pretty well."There are some strong brands in there – be it Harlequins or Leicester Tigers or others – with legacy and awareness of those identities."So I think we're starting from a different level with rugby."The rebrand will include more behind-the-scenes content from the league's bright, young things and more intelligent highlights, with dramatic moments, such as shuddering hits, try-saving tackles and interactions between players, included alongside the of the strategy is more mundane than the marketing, but just as important."The first time people come to rugby grounds, we have got to make them welcome," says Calder."We've got to point out where everything is, to make sure there's enough toilets for women, that the facilities are clean and the rest of it."Rugby is probably a little bit behind where some sports are, but that's a massive focus for us."We've invested in gathering match day experience scores from fans and match day experience training with the clubs." Calder says the hunt for new fans is a necessity, rather than a luxury. He began his career promoting drinks for a big-brand brewers."There was a massive, massive commitment to consumer understanding in that industry," he says."What struck me when I came into sport was there was a lot of data on who was buying, but not a lot of understanding of those people outside and why they weren't engaging with the sport."I think that's a flaw in sport because there's there's so much pressure commercially on clubs, the focus is on understanding as much as possible your existing audience and getting as much of a return out of it."It's less common to look beyond that and so you have these unfortunate sort of ever-decreasing circles."Calder has seen this close says The Hundred only came into being because Twenty20 cricket had been mistakenly marketed at existing supporters, drawing them away from county cricket, rather than bringing in families and new fans as isn't just other sports or other entertainment option that rugby must compete with either. It also has to keep pace with society."I think families are important whichever sport you're in - because more and more families make decisions to have experiences together of a weekend," says Calder."Maybe my dad, 30-40 years ago, would go and play golf all day or go to rugby with his mates, but I've got a commitment to look after my family and I enjoy being with my family."I want to make sure my two young girls can come to these events, and want to come to these events."We have seen it in women's football - the growth of that family experience economy. That's definitely something rugby should be tapping into."Whether the shorter, rawer Prem hits that sweet spot will be seen next season.
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Inside Prem rugby's radical rebrand: ‘It's intense, full contact and unflinching'
Rugby is not always a sport that copes well with change so perhaps the Premiership should brace for a backlash. On Saturday afternoon, the English top flight will undergo an identity shift, the Gallagher Premiership colloquialising into the Gallagher Prem – but a somewhat radical rebrand is about more than simply ditching seven letters from the name. The soft relaunch of the league is the culmination of several years of hard work aiming to modernise and better market the English top flight. It has been driven by Rob Calder, one of the key figures behind the launch of The Hundred during his time at the ECB, who carries the slightly nebulous title of chief growth officer but has become a figure of real importance within the sport. On 23 July, as the fixtures are unveiled for the next campaign, so too will be the bold new idents and iconography developed by Calder's team. Changes will also be clear in the way in which the league talks about itself, with brash billboards and branding unveiled promoting the brutality and brilliance that league chiefs already feel are on display. A teaser video will be played on the big screen during this weekend's Premiership final, and the rebrand covered as part of the TNT Sports broadcast. A billboard of Bath wing Joe Cokanasiga showing the new Prem rugby branding (Premiership Rugby) 'What is important to us is evolution,' Calder explains. 'We are a competition with great history, but we also believe we have a bright future ahead of us. Advertisement 'We didn't want to change it [too much] because this competition is flourishing. We wanted to do right by that, but we also wanted to move forward. 'You've seen it with the Championship reducing to the Champ, there's a de-formalisation of sport and being right by the fan is really important. Speaking in the vernacular is important to us. We are going to talk how fans talk. It's not formal, it's not corporate, it's not traditional. We know if we are going to grow from Gallagher Prem fans, we've got to attract international fans and then reach out into broader sport audiences.' While some of the usual marketing babble is rampant within the rebrand – 'orange means intensity,' Calder remarks seemingly with total sincerity – most of the changes are backed up by several years of consultation within the game and beyond. Players have been actively consulted, with Northampton's George Furbank and Beno Obano of Bath among those mentioned, and their feedback taken on board to give them greater centrality within the presentation and profile of the English top flight. To that end, there will be a drive to produce more player-led content to build the personas of a next generation of stars for the next generation of fans – the organic success of Henry Pollock has been a step towards that, and clubs are being encouraged to platform the personalities within the game. The booming popularity of Henry Pollock has given the league a template to market its stars (Getty) The engagement driven by an image of a battered and bruised Tom Dunn after Bath's Premiership semi-final win over Bristol – the hooker turned black and blue in pursuit of victory for the blue and black – plays into a desire to be less apologetic about the physicality endemic to a contact sport. It may not be good news for the squeamish and safety-minded, and there is a delicate balance to strike with an ongoing head-injury court case and falling recreational men's player numbers to worry about. But the Prem are confident in their player welfare measures, and intend to play up the big hits and colossal collisions as much as they can. Advertisement 'We are unashamedly going to be talking about physicality, intensity, extreme athleticism and the grit of top-flight club rugby,' Calder says. 'This is about big hits. It's intense, it's full contact, and it is unflinching. The players have said, 'celebrate us as players and what we do, the aggression and the gladiatorial nature'. We've given the brand the intensity it needs to match.' Prem rugby will play up the physicality of the sport (Getty) Separately to the rebrand, the Raine Group and Deloitte have also been engaged to look at the future of the league, figuring out the best competition structure to make it both attractive to investors and broadcasters while preserving the product that exists. A sort-of franchise model, controversially, remains on the table. A likely deal between Red Bull and Newcastle could be a precursor to other interested parties investing or taking ownership of clubs, expanding the portfolio of league stakeholders beyond the coterie of benefactors whose millions have propped up the game. Within this, though, also comes a recognition of the strength of the brands that already exist – Calder's previous work in cricket found that young people were unclear on the identity of counties, whereas clubs like Bath, Exeter and Leicester, among others, have established community footprints built over decades. Territories like Yorkshire – where an RFU academy already exists – and Kent – already awash with rugby fans – are seen as potential areas of expansion. Advertisement 'If we were to expand the number of teams, the benchmark would have to be very, very high,' chief executive Simon Massie-Taylor reveals. 'But it's not just based on how many seats you have in your stadium or how big your changing room is. It's about how much the game is going to grow and how the region is going to grow. Red Bull are thought to be close to investing in Newcastle Falcons (Getty) 'The second part is what the Prem can do to make itself more investable and we've built a foundation there. The two things are linked. If you can get a league with a set of clubs that are deemed as investable and you link it to a growth model, you grow the game.' TNT Sports are fully on board, with the strength of their commitment shown in the length and financial terms of a deal renewal that will see the broadcaster remain the Prem's primary partner through the 2030/31 season. Provided agreement can be reached with a suitable host club, next season will begin on a Thursday night, avoiding a clash with the Women's World Cup final on 27 September, with the league open to exploring where best to position their fixtures across a weekend. Taking a regular season game back to the United States is also a possibility down the line, with World Rugby currently investing heavily in the region ahead of the men's and women's World Cups of 2031 and 2033. Advertisement 'We've had games in the US before and they've been a flash in the pan; the wrong time in the season, the wrong area, the wrong teams [involved],' Massie-Taylor adds. 'But there is an opportunity in the build-up to the 2031 World Cup. 'We also have a US partner [Gallagher], which is coming up to its 100th anniversary [in 2027]. It needs to lead to something. It's about maxing out what we have domestically first, which is why sell-outs are so important and why that needs to continue. Then you start thinking beyond these shores.' The Premiership's previous visits to the United States were not a roaring success (Getty) The Premiership were quick to play down any sense of the rebrand being driven by the looming threat of the rebel R360 league, this piece of work ongoing ever since Massie-Taylor was appointed in 2021 with Calder a key early hire. If the first couple of years of his chapter were worrying, with three clubs going to the wall and great divisions evident within the English game, there is hope that the tough times are behind the top flight. One senior figure used the analogy of the Premiership now being 'out of intensive care, perhaps even out of the hospital' – perhaps not overwhelming prosperous times but after a long road to recovery there may just be better times ahead.
The Independent
14-06-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Inside Prem rugby's radical rebrand: ‘It's intense, full contact and unflinching'
Rugby is not always a sport that copes well with change so perhaps the Premiership should brace for a backlash. On Saturday afternoon, the English top flight will undergo an identity shift, the Gallagher Premiership colloquialising into the Gallagher Prem – but a somewhat radical rebrand is about more than simply ditching seven letters from the name. The soft relaunch of the league is the culmination of several years of hard work aiming to modernise and better market the English top flight. It has been driven by Rob Calder, one of the key figures behind the launch of The Hundred during his time at the ECB, who carries the slightly nebulous title of chief growth officer but has become a figure of real importance within the sport. On 23 July, as the fixtures are unveiled for the next campaign, so too will be the bold new idents and iconography developed by Calder's team. Changes will also be clear in the way in which the league talks about itself, with brash billboards and branding unveiled promoting the brutality and brilliance that league chiefs already feel are on display. A teaser video will be played on the big screen during this weekend's Premiership final, and the rebrand covered as part of the TNT Sports broadcast. 'What is important to us is evolution,' Calder explains. 'We are a competition with great history, but we also believe we have a bright future ahead of us. 'We didn't want to change it [too much] because this competition is flourishing. We wanted to do right by that, but we also wanted to move forward. 'You've seen it with the Championship reducing to the Champ, there's a de-formalisation of sport and being right by the fan is really important. Speaking in the vernacular is important to us. We are going to talk how fans talk. It's not formal, it's not corporate, it's not traditional. We know if we are going to grow from Gallagher Prem fans, we've got to attract international fans and then reach out into broader sport audiences.' While some of the usual marketing babble is rampant within the rebrand – 'orange means intensity,' Calder remarks seemingly with total sincerity – most of the changes are backed up by several years of consultation within the game and beyond. Players have been actively consulted, with Northampton's George Furbank and Beno Obano of Bath among those mentioned, and their feedback taken on board to give them greater centrality within the presentation and profile of the English top flight. To that end, there will be a drive to produce more player-led content to build the personas of a next generation of stars for the next generation of fans – the organic success of Henry Pollock has been a step towards that, and clubs are being encouraged to platform the personalities within the game. The engagement driven by an image of a battered and bruised Tom Dunn after Bath's Premiership semi-final win over Bristol – the hooker turned black and blue in pursuit of victory for the blue and black – plays into a desire to be less apologetic about the physicality endemic to a contact sport. It may not be good news for the squeamish and safety-minded, and there is a delicate balance to strike with an ongoing head-injury court case and falling recreational men's player numbers to worry about. But the Prem are confident in their player welfare measures, and intend to play up the big hits and colossal collisions as much as they can. 'We are unashamedly going to be talking about physicality, intensity, extreme athleticism and the grit of top-flight club rugby,' Calder says. 'This is about big hits. It's intense, it's full contact, and it is unflinching. The players have said, 'celebrate us as players and what we do, the aggression and the gladiatorial nature'. We've given the brand the intensity it needs to match.' Separately to the rebrand, the Raine Group and Deloitte have also been engaged to look at the future of the league, figuring out the best competition structure to make it both attractive to investors and broadcasters while preserving the product that exists. A sort-of franchise model, controversially, remains on the table. A likely deal between Red Bull and Newcastle could be a precursor to other interested parties investing or taking ownership of clubs, expanding the portfolio of league stakeholders beyond the coterie of benefactors whose millions have propped up the game. Within this, though, also comes a recognition of the strength of the brands that already exist – Calder's previous work in cricket found that young people were unclear on the identity of counties, whereas clubs like Bath, Exeter and Leicester, among others, have established community footprints built over decades. Territories like Yorkshire – where an RFU academy already exists – and Kent – already awash with rugby fans – are seen as potential areas of expansion. 'If we were to expand the number of teams, the benchmark would have to be very, very high,' chief executive Simon Massie-Taylor reveals. 'But it's not just based on how many seats you have in your stadium or how big your changing room is. It's about how much the game is going to grow and how the region is going to grow. 'The second part is what the Prem can do to make itself more investable and we've built a foundation there. The two things are linked. If you can get a league with a set of clubs that are deemed as investable and you link it to a growth model, you grow the game.' TNT Sports are fully on board, with the strength of their commitment shown in the length and financial terms of a deal renewal that will see the broadcaster remain the Prem's primary partner through the 2030/31 season. Provided agreement can be reached with a suitable host club, next season will begin on a Thursday night, avoiding a clash with the Women's World Cup final on 27 September, with the league open to exploring where best to position their fixtures across a weekend. Taking a regular season game back to the United States is also a possibility down the line, with World Rugby currently investing heavily in the region ahead of the men's and women's World Cups of 2031 and 2033. ' We've had games in the US before and they've been a flash in the pan; the wrong time in the season, the wrong area, the wrong teams [involved],' Massie-Taylor adds. 'But there is an opportunity in the build-up to the 2031 World Cup. 'We also have a US partner [Gallagher], which is coming up to its 100th anniversary [in 2027]. It needs to lead to something. It's about maxing out what we have domestically first, which is why sell-outs are so important and why that needs to continue. Then you start thinking beyond these shores.' The Premiership were quick to play down any sense of the rebrand being driven by the looming threat of the rebel R360 league, this piece of work ongoing ever since Massie-Taylor was appointed in 2021 with Calder a key early hire. If the first couple of years of his chapter were worrying, with three clubs going to the wall and great divisions evident within the English game, there is hope that the tough times are behind the top flight. One senior figure used the analogy of the Premiership now being 'out of intensive care, perhaps even out of the hospital' – perhaps not overwhelming prosperous times but after a long road to recovery there may just be better times ahead.
Telegraph
14-06-2025
- Sport
- Telegraph
Premiership will rebrand to... ‘Gallagher Prem'
English rugby union's top tier will be rebranded as 'Gallagher Prem' as part of a concerted push to champion the intensity, aggression and athleticism of the sport. The change, which comes a month after the second tier became 'Champ Rugby' in a similar facelift, will be unveiled during Saturday's final between Bath and Leicester Tigers. A teaser will be shown on the big screens at the Allianz Stadium and covered by the TNT Sports broadcast. After this soft launch, a full rebrand will come into action on July 23, when the fixtures for 2025-26 are unveiled. 'What is important to us is evolution,' explained Rob Calder, the Premiership's chief growth officer. 'We are a competition with great history, but we also believe we have a bright future ahead of us. We didn't want to change it [too much] because this competition is flourishing. We wanted to do right by that, but we also wanted to move forward. 'You've seen it with the Championship reducing to the Champ, there's a de-formalisation of sport and being right by the fan is really important. Speaking in the vernacular is important to us. 'We are going to talk how fans talk. It's not formal, it's not corporate, it's not traditional. We know if we are going to grow from Gallagher Prem fans, we've got to attract international fans and then reach out into broader sport audiences.' 'We want people to have a s--- Saturday if their team lose' Calder admitted that different names had been considered but 'there was so much strength in where we've come from' and the priority now is to 'reframe' rugby union to 'cut through to wider audiences'. Next season is due to begin with a Thursday night fixture on September 25 to avoid a clash with the Women's World Cup final two days later. Though this may end up as a one-off, more midweek matches could follow if it is viewed as a success. 'Real grit', 'raw speed' and 'big hits' are three taglines that will underpin the competition's advertising. Bosses want existing and prospective viewers to be 'unashamedly talking about physicality' as well as amplifying existing rivalries among the 10 clubs. 'We want people to have a s--- Saturday if their team lose,' said Andrew Georgiou, president and managing director of Warner Bros Discovery Sports, which owns TNT. 'We want them walking out of a match going: 'This has ruined my day.' That's what we want people to feel like and it's what we've got to build our sport towards.' Calder stressed that safety and welfare protocols and playing within the laws would remain integral to the Premiership's values, though the sport should 'not be shy' about its storytelling. 'Our focus is going to be on the intensity, the physicality and the extreme athleticism of rugby as well as the rawness and the grit of our league,' Calder said. 'It's a really simple proposition. It's about selling what makes this thing unique and what resonates with the broadest audiences. 'This is about big hits. It's intense, it's full contact, and it is unflinching. The players have said celebrate us as players and what we do; the aggression and the gladiatorial nature [of the sport]. Give the brand the intensity it needs to match.' 'Start thinking beyond these shores' There is confidence that showpiece fixtures can be moved to the United States in the build-up to the 2031 World Cup. Simon Massie-Taylor, the chief executive of Premiership Rugby, heralded the launch of the Club World Cup in 2028 as 'a step forward in the club game going global', and is mindful of how English domestic matches in the US have fallen flat in the past. 'The obvious point is the US,' he added. 'We've had games in the US before and they've been a flash in the pan; the wrong time in the season, the wrong area, the wrong teams [involved]. But there is an opportunity in the build-up to the 2031 World Cup. 'We also have a US partner [Gallagher], which is coming up to its 100th anniversary [in 2027]. It needs to lead to something. It's about maxing out what we have domestically first, which is why sell-outs are so important and why that needs to continue. Then you start thinking beyond these shores.' This all comes amid optimism for the competition's growth. Tickets for the final at Twickenham were purchased in record time, making it the 32nd sellout of the season; up from 18 in 2023-24. Away ends, introduced on a trial basis this year, are to be explored further. Stadium occupancy is a priority and powerbrokers aim to offer discounts for travelling away fans eventually. According to a YouGov survey, interest in the league has grown by 10 per cent and by 30 per cent among 18-34-year-olds. Massie-Taylor also said that clubs were 'chipping away' at government debt, from Covid loans, and third-party debt, with the on-field action in the top tier regarded as a major plus. Fast-paced, attacking rugby is viewed as an attractive characteristic, as is the league's unpredictability. Bath are aiming to be the sixth Premiership winner in as many seasons, following Exeter Chiefs, Harlequins, Leicester Tigers, Saracens and Northampton Saints. It is understood that Red Bull's takeover of Newcastle Falcons is close to completion in what is hoped to be a precursor of further outside investment and the Premiership's financial monitoring panel, set up in the wake of Worcester Warriors, Wasps and London Irish going bust in 2022, has been a stabilising force. TNT Sports is tied into a new broadcast deal that will run until 2031 and is thought to be worth just shy of £200 million in total, rising to about £40 million in the last year of the agreement. Leading players including George Furbank, the Northampton Saints full-back, and Beno Obano, the Bath loosehead prop, have been canvassed for opinions on the marketing of the Premiership and are eager for personalities and athleticism to be celebrated. 'Build us into something that attracts the next generation,' was how Calder summarised the pervading message. Another encouraging aspect has been the strengthening and alignment of England's age-group pathways, with the Under-20s reigning world champions. The rise of Henry Pollock, an indelible storyline of the past year, is viewed as an indication of how youngsters can sell the sport and September will see the launch of YouTube content fronted by the players in a bid to bring viewers behind the scenes.
BBC News
13-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Premiership rebrands to become the 'Prem' from next season
The Premiership - the top flight of English rugby union - will become the 'Gallagher Prem' next season as it rebrands to emphasise the physicality and intensity of the makeover will include a new orange logo which will be shown to fans, both at Allianz Stadium and watching on television, before Saturday's final between Bath and Leicester is hoped that shortening the league's name will help it "talk how fans talk" and give it a less corporate, more informal also believe showcasing the confrontational nature of the sport, alongside players' athleticism and skill, will draw in new, younger fans. The Premiership says it recorded 30% growth in fans between the ages of 18-34 between 2023 and 2024."The research showed physicality was a key part of the appeal of rugby," the Premiership's chief growth officer Rob Calder told BBC Sport."That came through very strongly, not just with existing audiences, but wider audiences as well."It can't just simply be that. There's got to be some light and dark to it."That's where the incredible skill, the incredible pace, the decision-making under pressure is so important. Precision in training and then bravery in execution."We want to talk about all those things." The Prem will focus on delivering more action and behind-the-scenes content to YouTube and social media, with big hits, young stars and emotional moments showcased alongside tries and match marketing push is part of a drive for growth, investment and subsequent financial security after the chastening demise of Worcester, Wasps and London Irish, who all went bust in the 2022-23 Premiership believes that a franchise system - with on-pitch relegation scrapped, but teams obliged to hit centrally-set standards on and off the pitch - would attract a flush of new to such an expansion model has the backing of Rugby Football Union chief executive Bill Sweeney, but will need the approval of the RFU Council to become second-tier Championship announced in May that it would similarly change its name for the start of next season, opting for 'Champ Rugby'.The Six Nations has also recently rebranded. The tournament unveiled a new orange logo in December, with the majority of fans unimpressed.
