America's Cup - Emirates Team NZ keeps tradition with new sponsor

by Sail-World.com on 18 Oct 2016 Steinlager have returned as a sponsor to Emirates Team New Zealand for the 35th America’s Cup challenge in Bermuda in 2017.

For the first time since 2003, the famous Steinlager brand will be back on the kiwi boat as Emirates Team New Zealand race, to once again win the oldest trophy in international sport.

New Zealand’s involvement in the America’s Cup began with Steinlager proudly as a sponsor for the 1986 Fremantle America’s Cup with KZ-7, The ‘Big Boat’ challenge with KZ-1 in 1988, the New Zealand Challenge in 1992 and continued all the way through to the ultimately successful campaigns 1995 and 2000.

“Steinlager is one of those legacy brands that is synonymous with not only sailing, but successful sailing in New Zealand, so to have them back onboard as a sponsor is really special,” explained Emirates Team New Zealand CEO Grant Dalton.

“It has always been a huge part of the team, so to have the famous red Steinlager badge back on the boat just feels right.”

Steinlager and Lion have had a long and proud association with New Zealand yachting that goes back over 30 years to the 1985/86 Whitbread Round the World Race.

Sponsor of ‘Lion New Zealand’ the boat skippered by Sir Peter Blake and crewed by Grant Dalton and Kevin Shoebridge. Steinlager was then naming sponsor of two of Sir Peter Blake’s offshore sailing campaigns, Steinlager 1 the high tech trimaran designed for the Round Australia Race. Then, most famously, came the all conquering Steinlager 2 Whitbread boat, with Shoebridge as Watch Leader that won every single leg of the race in the 1989/90 edition of the race.

“We’ve never stopped backing Emirates Team New Zealand over the years, but our team is really excited about being back on the boat,” said Ben Wheeler, Marketing Director at Lion.

“Steinlager was a beer born from a challenge and so was Emirates Team New Zealand. We are backing the team 100% in their quest to win back the America’s Cup.”

In reflecting on the history of the relationship Grant Dalton says, “It was the beer sipped out of the America’s Cup with the New Zealand victories in 1995 and 2000, it is our intention to again savour the taste of success with Steinlager and the America’s Cup in 2017.”

Under the America's Cup Protocol the teams are prohibited from displaying advertising relating to 'hard liquor' which under a reasonable interpretation would not extend to beer and wine. Curiously the America's Cup organisers, Golden Gate Yacht Club have signed two hard liquor sponsors - a rum and vodka companies. In the 2013 America's Cup, Emirates Team NZ had Skyy vodka as a sponsor, but under the 2017 Protocol they were barred.