The Rugby Football Union and Premier Rugby have appointed Pitch International to manage the sales and distribution of their international television rights.

The agreement, which starts with immediate effect, is a major coup for Pitch, a company only recently formed by several former key members of the Octagon CSI sales team. Pitch held off strong bids from Octagon and TWI, the previous incumbents. Pitch will also become media advisers to the RFU and PRL’s commercial divisions.

Paul Vaughan, commercial director of the RFU, said: “We were impressed with Pitch’s fresh and innovative approach and we look forward to working with them to develop new ideas and grow the international market.”

Jon Varney, commercial director of PRL, said: “We are delighted with Pitch’s appointment and believe they will help take the Guinness Premiership to a new and bigger audience world wide.”

Paul McGrath, of Pitch International, said:” This is a major contract for us to win against strong opposition. We may be a young company but we have a wealth of experience in our team and are more than confident we can grow English rugby’s brand and revenue streams internationally.”

Please contact:

Paul McGrath
Pitch International
17 Brewhouse Lane
Putney Wharf
London
SW15 2JX
Tel: +44 (0)20 8789 6070
Fax: +44 (0)20 8788 4920
Paul@pitchinternational.com
http://www.pitchinternational.com/