Kappa, the leading Italian sportswear brand known for iconic sporting apparel, has announced a return to UK sport partnerships.
Recognising an opportunity in the global rugby sporting market to fuse cultural styles through product and community, Kappa has announced an exciting deal as Official Supplier Partner to the BKT United Rugby Championship (URC) match officials with their kit, starting from the 2023-24 season.
The URC is a professional rugby union competition featuring teams from Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Italy and South Africa. This prestigious global club competition is considered one of the top leagues in rugby, is home to the most international players of any league in the world while consistently producing the stars of tomorrow.
Kappa is known for producing high-quality sportswear that is both stylish and functional and has worked with some of the biggest names in sports, including Juventus, Stade Français, Barcelona, Aston Villa, Alpine Racing and Napoli.
The 23/24 match official’s kits take design inspiration from the competition’s own core brand values, looking to express a unity in the game without making everything feel uniformed. Kappa is known for its rich DNA of creativity and a culture of non-conformity, synergistic with the URC who also curate exciting styles, cultures, languages and identity.
This teamwear brand will build apparel collections specifically curated for the needs of the League’s personnel, ensuring they are comfortable, distinctly recognisable and able to withstand the many conditions the cross-hemisphere league has to weather.
Mark Ward, Kappa UK Brand Director, said: “This partnership represents a major milestone for Kappa UK, and we are honoured to be working with the United Rugby Championship. We are committed to providing the URC with the best possible sportswear, and we look forward to seeing our kits on the field next season. We can’t wait to see how the combined brand and community work pushes the game forward in this exciting partnership between Kappa and the United Rugby Championship.”
Martin Anayi, United Rugby Championship CEO, said: “We believe that the URC boasts the most eye-catching new brand in rugby with a richness that befits the excitement and diversity of our league. Kappa have a flair for mixing heritage with modern design and we can’t wait to see how they apply that approach to our match officials kit. Given their history of working with some of the biggest names in sport we know that not only will our referees and match officials look good, they will be wearing kit with a proven track record of supporting elite performance.”
This exciting partnership not only highlights the growth opportunities identified in rugby but also demonstrates Kappa UK’s commitment to excellence and innovation in team sport. The instantly recognisable brand will now look to make this announcement one of many new developments in the UK market as it looks to capitalise on opportunities.
