Ulster Rugby Annual Report 2015 - 2016

with 47 schools entering the competition at this level. There was also an U18 Development Cup competition introduced in which 8 schools competed with Dromore HS running out winners. Thanks are due to the organisers of these tournaments who did an excellent job. Sincere thanks are also due to the clubs who hosted these competitions. The continuing development of the High Schools game is very much down to the commitment of the High Schools Committee, chaired by Mark Patton. Damien Campbell, who is stepping down after 4 years as secretary of this committee also deserves our thanks for his work and efforts. MINI RUGBY Fifty clubs provided mini rugby at the start of the season, ensuring that right through the province children were given the opportunity to participate within the sport, the increase in participation can only bode well for the future development of the game. In a change to the traditional format of national festivals this year saw the inauguration of provincial Aviva festivals. Ballyclare RFC kindly hosted this season’s festival that saw 20 teams from across the province and five teams from Leinster making the journey up to play. The culmination of the Aviva National Festival series was the National event at the Aviva Stadium on the 30th April. Ulster were well represented with three U10 boys’ sides and two U12 girls’ sides in attendance. Two areas were identified at the start of the season as a focus for mini rugby development in the province. These were the development of the U12 age group and the registration of all club mini rugby players. Considerable work was put in by the Branch development staff which ensured that both these areas showed a significant improvement during the course of the season. Thanks to the continued sponsorship of Centra, every mini rugby club in the province with a U12 team has had the opportunity to play at the Kingspan Stadium during the half time break of Ulster matches. In addition the support of Maxol resulted in the running of festivals throughout the Ulster, focusing on the U7, U9 and U12 age groups. In total 9 festivals took place through the course of the season. Overall it has been a successful season for mini rugby in Ulster and it is hoped that with an increasing focus on the introduction of the girl’s game the province will see a further increase in playing numbers and participating clubs. COMMERCIAL AND MARKETING REPORT With 2015 being a Rugby World Cup year there were always certain challenges that this would bring to the season for Ulster Rugby. The biggest of these were match attendances, the corresponding fan engagement and income. The previous season 2014/15 had been a record year for match attendance in Ulster with an average of 16,200. It was always going to be a challenge to surpass this number, but with every challenge there are opportunities. Instead of going up against an RWC All Blacks match, the Ulster v Treviso match was rescheduled for 6pm with the target market aimed very clearly at families and youth groups. The 22

product on offer was a great wrap round experience and the marketing plan was developed carefully with a tremendous result. Ulster Rugby proved to have the highest attendance across the PRO12 League that weekend with some 14,400 attending the Treviso match but the biggest win was the amount of new customers that attended the match, had a great experience and who we know will return again. Another challenge was the first Sunday match at home for some 15 years against Scarlets in February. Again, a careful marketing strategy was developed and executed with the result that there was an excellent crowd of over 15,200 at the game. Whilst not hitting the record attendance highs of the previous season Ulster have once again punched above our weight in a difficult year that saw most clubs floundering commercially in the wake of RWC 2015. The average match attendance across the season at the Kingspan Stadium was 15,554, which includes a record 10,511 season tickets holders, and which enabled ticket income to remain steady. A very strong sponsorship portfolio has once again delivered above expectation and overall this has cemented a strong position delivering commercial income of £7.5 million which is a 7% increase on the previous year. A new website was launched in September 2015, which merged the professional and domestic websites into one, thereby enhancing the user experience and encouraging browsing across all areas of the game in Ulster. This new structure, combined with a clear focus on delivering more frequent, timely and relevant content, had a tremendous impact as the new website delivered a 30% increase in traffic on the previous season. Ulster Rugby’s social media channels also continued to flourish, with the number of followers rising from 221,000 to 291,000 during the financial year. This growth has been facilitated by the appointment of a Creative Content Designer, who has produced engaging artwork and video content to engage Ulster Rugby’s online audience. With Sky Sports and BT Sport broadcasting almost half of Ulster’s games this season, the Province has been exposed to an expanding audience. Closer to home, an official media partnership was established with the Q Radio Network, while the Irish News has increased its coverage of Ulster Rugby significantly. Both of these relationships have provided Ulster Rugby with an opportunity to reach new markets. The challenges for the Commercial and Marketing team, in a busy, fast paced environment was to continue to provide a high level service to meet the needs of customers, partners and sponsors. This is critical in our strategic planning to ensure we have sold out matches, long term sponsorship deals and a thriving business to business market. The forecast for next season shows this already is delivering against targets as Ulster Rugby is looking forward to another successful year commercially. The Commercial and Marketing team led by Fiona Hampton deserve great praise for the work that they have put in this season.

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