PUMA have signed a contract with explosive Springbok and Bulls scrumhalf Francois Hougaard that will run from 01 June beyond the 2015 IRB Rugby World Cup™.
The sponsorship deal between the skilled backline player and the Sportlifestyle brand will see Hougaard wearing PUMA performance and lifestyle product. “I am proud to be associated with a brand with the rich history and technical superiority of PUMA,” says Hougaard. “Their gear is unparalleled and their casualwear is slick and stylish right up my alley.”
Hougaard’s agent, Craig Livingstone of Prosport International, says that the tricky Bok back and the PUMA brand are a match made in heaven. “Hougi is a
talented and in-demand young man and his association with PUMA is
a natural fit,” says Livingstone. “The demand for his signature amongst
sportswear suitors was incredibly high and we are delighted that PUMA were
able to create a package that both matched his image and his ambition.”
The deal comes hot on the heels of Hougaard’s new contract with the Bulls, another team that PUMA has added to their books in recent times as full technical kit sponsor.
“PUMA is very excited to welcome Hougi to the PUMA Rugby family,” says PUMA South Africa’s Marketing Director Brett Bellinger. “Hougi is an extremely talented and dynamic player and represents the perfect on-field and off-field attributes that will make him a great asset to PUMA in driving our rugby business going forward.”
Hougaard will join a formidable group of South African PUMA Rugby players including Schalk Burger, Gio Aplon, Andries Bekker, Willem Alberts, Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira and Ryan Kankowski. He will wear the new statement boot, the PUMA evoSPEED I FG, from 1 June 2012.
The evoSPEED boot is one of the lightest boots in the market and is designed to help players achieve top speeds on the field. Inspired by the World’s Fastest Man Usain Bolt, the evoSPEED collection features product offerings across all PUMA sport categories.
A host of other PUMA assets will be wearing the brand new evoSPEED product across cricket, soccer and rugby as a symbolic show of support for Usain Bolt in the upcoming Olympics. These include cricketers AB de Villiers and the Morkel brothers, Bafana Bafana captain Steven Pienaar, and Springboks Gio Aplon and Schalk Burger.
