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erennial Suncorp Super Netball finalists, Sunshine Coast Lightning, are currently welcoming new commercial partners for the remainder of the 2021 season and beyond.

The club, which will celebrate its 5th anniversary later this month, has been able to retain both principal partners from its inaugural season in Sunshine Coast Council and Downer, and also a host of foundation partners who have continued their investment in Lightning.

Co-owned by Melbourne Storm Group and the University of the Sunshine Coast, Lightning is the only Suncorp Super Netball club to feature in all five finals campaigns since the competition’s inception, recently securing their place for the 2021 finals series.

Sunshine Coast Lightning general manager of commercial, Andrew McShea, said the club has a true community focus that resonates with brands.

“Sunshine Coast Lightning is Australia’s most successful national start-up sporting club and is a leading brand in women’s sport both on and off the court,” McShea said.

“Netball is Australia’s largest participation female sport and is the most watched sport by women, who we know make up a large percentage of decision makers of brands.

“Lightning is in market for 2022 opportunities but also have some incredible partnership opportunities for brands right now aligning with our 2021 finals campaign,” he said.

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the importance of B2B connections has become front of mind for a number of businesses and Lightning facilitating those introductions has also added ROI for partners, according to McShea.

“We specialise in working with brands to cut through the clutter, we connect with a truly national broadcast audience and pride ourselves on B2B connections, community engagement and digital amplification,” McShea said.

“As part of the Storm group, Sunshine Coast Lightning can provide a whole of business solution to meet objectives by providing integration with a leading professional women’s team and a leading professional men’s team in Melbourne Storm.

“The opportunities are amplified by the diversification of the teams – competing in two different sports and geographic regions of Australia, with Lightning and the Suncorp Super Netball league also having a strong following in key international markets including New Zealand, UK and South Africa.

“We have many examples of brands who are integrated across both teams to provide engagement on multiple levels across both sets of fan bases,” he said.

As a principal partner of the club, Downer Group’s head of corporate affairs and investor relations, Michael Sharp, said there is a lot of value in partnering with Sunshine Coast Lightning.

“Lightning is a great organisation to be partnering with, the club is extremely well run, and it is part of an excellent competition,” Sharp said.

“It is followed and watched by far more people than you would expect, and the appreciation and recognition we receive from supporting not just the team, but the sport of netball in Australia, is very strong and rewarding,” he said.

Lightning is currently in market with a number of unique branding and partnership opportunities for the remainder of this season and beyond as the Suncorp Super Netball competition enters its new broadcast and digital rights deal in 2022.

To enquire about all current and future Sunshine Coast Lightning partnership opportunities, click here.