New Zealand Rugby Commercial
New Zealand Rugby Commercial (NZRC) manages the commercial aspects of New Zealand Rugby.
We are a small team, driven by the same overall vision as New Zealand Rugby – to inspire and unify through rugby. New Zealand Rugby Commercial runs the global commercial business of the professional game, represented by our Teams in Black and professional club competitions, ultimately helping nurture the grassroots and deliver value to New Zealand Rugby, our broader stakeholders and our commercial partners.
We live by Te Ara Rangatira, the four pou of The Rugby Way – Be Welcoming, Be Our Best, Be Passionate and Play Fair.
What we do
New Zealand Rugby Commercial is responsible for all aspects of the commercial business of professional rugby - broadcast and digital content, sponsorship, match revenue and merchandising. We connect with fans, in New Zealand and globally, through live matches, and non-live, through digital content, providing an always on channel for fans to engage with our teams, driving value for fans, broadcast and sponsor partners. All of this flows back to nurture the grassroots and enable excellence in all that we do across all of rugby.
Who we are
NZRC has its own nine-person Board.
- An Independent Chair – Ian Narev
- Five representatives from New Zealand Rugby, including NZR CEO (Mark Robinson), Bailey Mackey, Dame Patsy Reddy, Gina Brogi, Rob Fyfe
- One Director representing the professional players of New Zealand (as nominated by the NZRPA) –Richie McCaw;
- Two directors from our partners Silver Lake – Simon Patterson and Stephen Evans.
Craig Fenton commenced as CEO in in January 2024. Our Executive comprises a management team covering all key discipline areas:
- Yarnie Guthrie - General Manager - Commercial
- Jono Southee - Chief Information and Technology Officer
- Kerry McKenzie - General Manager - Marketing and Brand
- Corin Dimopoulos – General Manager – Content