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England RL x Oxen - 5 year deal


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I don't particularly have a problem with Oxen making the shirts and accompanying collections, provided the quality is there.
They're a small sports brand, but everyone starts somewhere.

If they can improve on the Hummel kits, which IMO were poor, it'll be something.

The one positive they have over any of the previous England RL, or GB, kits suppliers is they have a physical store, even if it is just one in Leeds. It's one more than Hummel or ISC had, and could become a focus for the England team and any activations around the World cup. Which should be a positive.

And judging by that press release England RL fans can look forward to a lot more training tops!

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From my experience of Oxen at Leeds they seem to be a bit of a weird Jekyll and Hyde situation really.

They do all the advertising and "selling" stuff with a dynamic and modern professional approach; the "drops" of new training/off field kit for example is reminiscient of the biggest brands. Furthermore the move to having a Leeds Rhinos shop in the city itself is a big boost and will be shared with England now. Yet the quality of the gear itself isn't fantastic imo, hit and miss at best - and I don't know whether it is the pandemic forcing them to churn out more stuff to reach targets but they have been pumping out a lot for the Rhinos over the past 12 months, and quality has definitely been sacrificed for quantity on some of it.

For England/RFL going into a home world cup you'd hope for a premium brand - that said I don't think Hummel ever got it right with England (especially the necks!) so I have no real qualms with them moving from them.

Once again as with Leeds I feel as though this is more of a coup for Oxen than the team they are making kit for.

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Just now, Davo5 said:

What a shame our National side has gone down the cheap & cheerful route,having said that the chances of landing a marquee manufacturer must be hard when the team doesn’t play for 2 yrs.

That is a key point. What exactly are they going to sell after the world cup? It sounds ridiculous but they've signed a 5 year deal for a team that on paper doesn't have any plans for fixtures after 9 months time.

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There must be some dodgy dealings going on because the oxen shirts I have arnt great! I currently have 2 shirts and a vest,they seem like cheap imported copies.

Like as been said they tick boxes with promotions and stores but quality is rather lacking i wont be buying another one of their products unless its greatly improved.

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it's worth pointing out that quality can sometimes be down to a number of things, not necessarily entirely down to the professionalism or ability of a sports brand. In my experience price point is often a driver of quality. Which has much to do with who you are working with and what they want to buy at, and in what quantities.
 

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1 minute ago, Eddie said:

Is the exciting store within a store concept just a rack of England clobber in the Leeds club shop? 

Yes, but it could be worse, it could be in Doncaster...

In all seriousness this seems the only viable way to get an England RL shop into a major city centre

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I must admit I find this is very underwhelming. Perception and brand matters, particularly amongst younger fans. People may not think it should matter but it does and there are people that would buy a shirt if it was Nike, Adidas or Puma who wont if it is a brand they have never heard of. Its very small time for the national team and not a good look.

As an aside what happened with Hummel. This was touted as a 4 year deal in 2018, including the World Cup:

The Rugby Football League have today announced a new four-year kit and merchandise partnership with hummel.

As part of the agreement, hummel will supply product to the Rugby Football League and produce kit for all England Rugby League squads, Match Officials, Champion Schools Competition, staff and all associated programmes, as well as a full range of merchandise for England supporters around the world.

Founded in 1923, hummel are a Danish sportswear brand who provide apparel to some of the biggest teams across the world in football, handball, basketball, futsal and volleyball.

Hummel, who currently produce the Danish national football team kit and will feature at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, have previously partnered with teams such as Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Benfica, Udinese and North Queensland Cowboys.

Rugby Football League Interim Chief Executive Officer, Ralph Rimmer, said: “As a forward-thinking sport we are proud to be partnering with such an established world-wide brand like hummel.

“We’re excited to bring them into the game of Rugby League and the international environment with a Test Series, Tours and a home World Cup on the horizon for our national sides.

Rugby Football League and hummel announce four-year partnership (rugby-league.com)

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Just now, Damien said:

I must admit I find this is very underwhelming. Perception and brand matters, particularly amongst younger fans. People may not think it should matter but it does and there are people that would buy a shirt if it was Nike, Adidas or Puma who wont if it is a brand they have never heard of. Its very small time for the national team and not a good look.

As an aside what happened with Hummel. This was touted as a 4 year deal in 2018, including the World Cup:

The Rugby Football League have today announced a new four-year kit and merchandise partnership with hummel.

As part of the agreement, hummel will supply product to the Rugby Football League and produce kit for all England Rugby League squads, Match Officials, Champion Schools Competition, staff and all associated programmes, as well as a full range of merchandise for England supporters around the world.

Founded in 1923, hummel are a Danish sportswear brand who provide apparel to some of the biggest teams across the world in football, handball, basketball, futsal and volleyball.

Hummel, who currently produce the Danish national football team kit and will feature at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, have previously partnered with teams such as Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Benfica, Udinese and North Queensland Cowboys.

Rugby Football League Interim Chief Executive Officer, Ralph Rimmer, said: “As a forward-thinking sport we are proud to be partnering with such an established world-wide brand like hummel.

“We’re excited to bring them into the game of Rugby League and the international environment with a Test Series, Tours and a home World Cup on the horizon for our national sides.

Rugby Football League and hummel announce four-year partnership (rugby-league.com)

Very odd

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3 minutes ago, Damien said:

I must admit I find this is very underwhelming. Perception and brand matters, particularly amongst younger fans. People may not think it should matter but it does and there are people that would buy a shirt if it was Nike, Adidas or Puma who wont if it is a brand they have never heard of. Its very small time for the national team and not a good look.

As an aside what happened with Hummel. This was touted as a 4 year deal in 2018, including the World Cup:

The Rugby Football League have today announced a new four-year kit and merchandise partnership with hummel.

As part of the agreement, hummel will supply product to the Rugby Football League and produce kit for all England Rugby League squads, Match Officials, Champion Schools Competition, staff and all associated programmes, as well as a full range of merchandise for England supporters around the world.

Founded in 1923, hummel are a Danish sportswear brand who provide apparel to some of the biggest teams across the world in football, handball, basketball, futsal and volleyball.

Hummel, who currently produce the Danish national football team kit and will feature at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, have previously partnered with teams such as Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Benfica, Udinese and North Queensland Cowboys.

Rugby Football League Interim Chief Executive Officer, Ralph Rimmer, said: “As a forward-thinking sport we are proud to be partnering with such an established world-wide brand like hummel.

“We’re excited to bring them into the game of Rugby League and the international environment with a Test Series, Tours and a home World Cup on the horizon for our national sides.

Rugby Football League and hummel announce four-year partnership (rugby-league.com)

Probably a mutual parting of ways. One party probably not being very happy with how things are going/have gone.

Agree completely about perception, but sadly this is the level we are at with England RL.

I'd be surprised if we sold anything close to 8-10,000 England shirts previously. Though obviously thats pure speculation on my part. Going to a major brand with anything like those figures and no strategy for the national team will get you laughed out of the room.

While not being a Nike or a Puma, Oxen probably tick a lot of boxes for the RFL currently. Price point, physical retail, ecoms platforms, wharehousing, logistics.

Newham Dockers - Champions 2013. Rugby League For East London. 100% Cockney Rugby League!

Twitter: @NewhamDockersRL - Get following!

www.newhamdockers.co.uk

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35 minutes ago, Davo5 said:

What a shame our National side has gone down the cheap & cheerful route,having said that the chances of landing a marquee manufacturer must be hard when the team doesn’t play for 2 yrs.

Read the threads about the charges for streaming - RL is a cheap sport

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13 minutes ago, Damien said:

I must admit I find this is very underwhelming. Perception and brand matters, particularly amongst younger fans. People may not think it should matter but it does and there are people that would buy a shirt if it was Nike, Adidas or Puma who wont if it is a brand they have never heard of. Its very small time for the national team and not a good look.

As an aside what happened with Hummel. This was touted as a 4 year deal in 2018, including the World Cup:

The Rugby Football League have today announced a new four-year kit and merchandise partnership with hummel.

As part of the agreement, hummel will supply product to the Rugby Football League and produce kit for all England Rugby League squads, Match Officials, Champion Schools Competition, staff and all associated programmes, as well as a full range of merchandise for England supporters around the world.

Founded in 1923, hummel are a Danish sportswear brand who provide apparel to some of the biggest teams across the world in football, handball, basketball, futsal and volleyball.

Hummel, who currently produce the Danish national football team kit and will feature at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, have previously partnered with teams such as Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Benfica, Udinese and North Queensland Cowboys.

Rugby Football League Interim Chief Executive Officer, Ralph Rimmer, said: “As a forward-thinking sport we are proud to be partnering with such an established world-wide brand like hummel.

“We’re excited to bring them into the game of Rugby League and the international environment with a Test Series, Tours and a home World Cup on the horizon for our national sides.

Rugby Football League and hummel announce four-year partnership (rugby-league.com)

That's weird. And a little disappointing as someone who loved the GB stuff that Hummel came up with (and buying a size down to usual was a nice novelty!)

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2 minutes ago, EastLondonMike said:

Probably a mutual parting of ways. One party probably not being very happy with how things are going/have gone.

Agree completely about perception, but sadly this is the level we are at with England RL.

I'd be surprised if we sold anything close to 8-10,000 England shirts previously. Though obviously thats pure speculation on my part. Going to a major brand with anything like those figures and no strategy for the national team will get you laughed out of the room.

While not being a Nike or a Puma, Oxen probably tick a lot of boxes for the RFL currently. Price point, physical retail, ecoms platforms, wharehousing, logistics.

Hardly playing games doesn't help. No major brand, or sponsor is going to be interested in that. England havent even played since 2018 and the first year of the Hummel deal!

Puma is probably the highest profile sponsor we have had and we actually had them for a large number of years so it can be done. Hummel obviously are a decent brand too but like I said something must have happened there.

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2 minutes ago, Damien said:

Hardly playing games doesn't help. No major brand, or sponsor is going to be interested in that. England havent even played since 2018 and the first year of the Hummel deal!

Puma is probably the highest profile sponsor we have had and we actually had them for a large number of years so it can be done. Hummel obviously are a decent brand too but like I said something must have happened there.

yep. Hardly going to get much brand exposure are they? Probably the same case here, apart from a home world cup can we honestly say when we'll next see England play? (i say that without actually checking when we are next scheduled to play post world cup!)

The Puma deal was with the UK license holder at the time, who are actually now 100% owned by Puma. As far as major brands go i think linking up again with Puma would be our best fit.

Newham Dockers - Champions 2013. Rugby League For East London. 100% Cockney Rugby League!

Twitter: @NewhamDockersRL - Get following!

www.newhamdockers.co.uk

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I don't have an issue with using brands like this if they do a good job.

I share the other concerns though around what are they getting for this 5 year contract? That should be laid out and clear. 

The announcement about having some shelf space in Leeds' shop is underwhelming small time guff.

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21 minutes ago, Damien said:

I must admit I find this is very underwhelming. Perception and brand matters, particularly amongst younger fans. People may not think it should matter but it does and there are people that would buy a shirt if it was Nike, Adidas or Puma who wont if it is a brand they have never heard of. Its very small time for the national team and not a good look.

As an aside what happened with Hummel. This was touted as a 4 year deal in 2018, including the World Cup:

The Rugby Football League have today announced a new four-year kit and merchandise partnership with hummel.

As part of the agreement, hummel will supply product to the Rugby Football League and produce kit for all England Rugby League squads, Match Officials, Champion Schools Competition, staff and all associated programmes, as well as a full range of merchandise for England supporters around the world.

Founded in 1923, hummel are a Danish sportswear brand who provide apparel to some of the biggest teams across the world in football, handball, basketball, futsal and volleyball.

Hummel, who currently produce the Danish national football team kit and will feature at this year’s FIFA World Cup in Russia, have previously partnered with teams such as Real Madrid, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, Benfica, Udinese and North Queensland Cowboys.

Rugby Football League Interim Chief Executive Officer, Ralph Rimmer, said: “As a forward-thinking sport we are proud to be partnering with such an established world-wide brand like hummel.

“We’re excited to bring them into the game of Rugby League and the international environment with a Test Series, Tours and a home World Cup on the horizon for our national sides.

Rugby Football League and hummel announce four-year partnership (rugby-league.com)

I was buzzing when we got Hummel, they’ve made so many iconic football shirts, and then we got the England one with a neckline that sat just above my navel. 

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1 minute ago, EastLondonMike said:

yep. Hardly going to get much brand exposure are they? Probably the same case here, apart from a home world cup can we honestly say when we'll next see England play? (i say that without actually checking when we are next scheduled to play post world cup!)

The Puma deal was with the UK license holder at the time, who are actually now 100% owned by Puma. As far as major brands go i think linking up again with Puma would be our best fit.

On when we are playing next, who knows? We literally have nothing scheduled at all, nada.

I think with major brands our best hope is going to be seeing who supply Union - as I doubt we're big enough to get the larger brands to create new clothing lines just for Rugby. In that light Umbro or Adidas stand out, do Nike still do Saracens?

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3 minutes ago, Dave T said:

The announcement about having some shelf space in Leeds' shop is underwhelming small time guff.

Shop within a shop man! Get with it!

In fairness I see this as the only significant positive here, I can see it being extended to the other EPS clubs (Cas and Hull KR), but realistically having a physical England presence in a city is a positive step.

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1 minute ago, Tommygilf said:

On when we are playing next, who knows? We literally have nothing scheduled at all, nada.

I think with major brands our best hope is going to be seeing who supply Union - as I doubt we're big enough to get the larger brands to create new clothing lines just for Rugby. In that light Umbro or Adidas stand out, do Nike still do Saracens?

Think Adi would be too difficult and too political. Puma or Umbro would be our best fit IMO, and probably the easiest to achieve. But would be a few years away and would depend on a successful and profitable period of growth with Oxen.
As well as a strategy for growth within the game.

Newham Dockers - Champions 2013. Rugby League For East London. 100% Cockney Rugby League!

Twitter: @NewhamDockersRL - Get following!

www.newhamdockers.co.uk

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To attract anyone of note you have to promote them (quid pro quo you may say)... as has been said, when do we play next after the world cup?? even if we play again its probably a 3 game series.. 3 games per year... jeez it really isnt much.. 2 mid season internationals and a tournament/series at the end on FTA and we may be able to start talking a little higher (with a world cup every 4 years) but 3 games per year (though not every year) i cannot see bringing people back in. 

IMHO the Hummel deal was more hinged on the GB stuff, after all it is an "iconic shirt" (it isnt the reason to bring them back, but this is the only time the argument actually does work, for the shirt manufacturer) and i bet they loved the fact the tour only just happened, but in a very different way and the tour was a bust. Since then there has been nothing (which is not all down to the RFL)... i'm not surprised they've walked from the national team.. 

I have the new Eagles top and think it is pretty good, fit and size are good and quality seems fine (as much as modern shirts are). Also have an O'neils warrington one which is similar in fit and quality. Also have the Hummel England one, quality is fine but the fit is terrible. Also have an ISC Melbourne top which is better than all of them in terms of fit, quality is on a par to Oxen and O'neils IMHO. My opinion on the Oxen thing will come down to design in the end as dont see much difference with quality. If they can somehow make it "RL" then that would be great as i think that has been lacking in all england shirts, the issue around adding a chevron making it too "St Helensy" etc doesnt help so will be interested to see what they do.

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3 minutes ago, EastLondonMike said:

Think Adi would be too difficult and too political. Puma or Umbro would be our best fit IMO, and probably the easiest to achieve. But would be a few years away and would depend on a successful and profitable period of growth with Oxen.
As well as a strategy for growth within the game.

Adidas political?

Umbro are certainly doing with Union what Hummel probably thought they were doing with League by going for the national team and an individual club and building from there (England/Bristol vs England/Wigan).

As it stands Oxen are signed up with Leeds for a decade, so the RFL partnership is there for a while.

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