Ultimate Rugby, the online rugby portal that is backed by Brian O’Driscoll, has selected Electric Media, Ireland’s largest online advertising sales agency, to manage sales of advertising on its popular mobile app.
Ultimate Rugby covers all Tier 1 rugby in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, including individual player pages for over 2,500 players and 85 professional clubs, making it
Launched last year in a joint venture between O’Driscoll and software entrepreneur Ray Nolan the founder of companies like Web Reservations International and HostelWorld.com which he sold for a reputed €200m. He was also an early stage investor in the Skyscanner.com, the largest online flight search and comparison website with his own stake reported to be worth in excess of €20m. His other interests include Worky.com and Xsellco.com, a software platform which allows sellers on eBay and Amazon.com manage their inventory and finances.
Ultimate Rugby is the first global rugby app and online community that brings fans up to the minute news of all professional matches around the world. It also provides content, news and messages direct to fans’ smartphones.
Rather than focus on one team, geography or league, Ultimate Rugby aims to cover as many competitions around the world as possible including the Aviva Premiership, RaboDirect PRO12, the Heineken Cup, the Six Nations, the Rugby Championship and the majority of European and Southern Hemisphere tournaments.
“Ultimate Rugby is one of the leading apps to come out of Ireland in the last 12 months”, says Lawrence Chmara, digital publisher manager at Electric Media. “The team behind it quickly spotted the migration from desktop towards mobile and have created an essential ‘second screen’ resource for every rugby fan in Ireland. From mobile banners to exclusive sponsorship of tournament news and bespoke content packages there are a range of products now available on Ultimate Rugby for brands to reach this highly desirable audience”.
“We’ve had a fantastic first year since launch and are proving to be the only app a rugby fan will need”, adds Rick Evans, commercial manager at Ultimate Rugby. “We are delighted to now be utilising the experience of Electric Media to help take the app to the next level in terms of commercialisation”.
