World Rugby appoints Macron as match officials kit supplier in three-year deal

World Rugby and Macron have announced details of a wide-ranging official apparel supplier deal that will see the Italian brand supply performance wear for the Emirates Match Officials for international tournaments and fixtures, including Rugby World Cup 2021 in New Zealand, Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 in Cape Town and Rugby World Cup 2023 in France.

The agreement was officially announced ahead of the Malaga round of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series 2022, where the striking new sevens match officials kit will make its debut on the backs of the world’s best male and female sevens referees. The 15s kit will be revealed ahead of the men’s and women’s Six Nations.

Under the deal, Macron will also become official sports apparel supplier of Rugby World Cup 2021 and 2023, kitting out tournament officials, with a range of performance and leisure wear which will be made available for fans to purchase. 

World Rugby Chief Executive Alan Gilpin said: “We are delighted to welcome Macron on board as World Rugby’s new official sports apparel supplier for at least the next three years.

“Macron shares our passion for high performance culture and we have been impressed with the attention to detail to ensure that the world’s top match officials performing on the world’s biggest stages are able to be the best they can be no matter the conditions through a relentless focus on performance, innovation and technology.”

In addition to the traditional colours sported by World Rugby match officials, namely blue, white and orange, the jerseys also feature bespoke designs and colour variants. World Rugby is also colour blind positive in its approach to colour selection.

Macron is firmly established as one of the world’s most recognisable performance wear brands and has a portfolio of successful partnerships in rugby and football, incorporating the likes of Wales, Scotland, Italy and UEFA.

Macron CEO Gianluca Pavanello said: “We are proud of this partnership with World Rugby. The world of rugby is increasingly becoming ‘our home’. We have always shared the values that the sport represents. We are thrilled to collaborate with the organisation that represents rugby at a global level by bringing and sharing our experience, expertise and professionalism, as well as our passion for the sport.

“The World Rugby clothing line will be unique and exclusive, representing the essence of the sport on the world’s major stages, including the men’s and women’s sevens and 15s Rugby World Cups, stages on which we are proud to see the Macron brand become more and more embedded in the sport.”