Business sponsorship

Also called: Business sponsorship tiers (Gold/Silver/Bronze)

Ask businesses to support your group in return for agreed recognition or advertising. Choose signs, playing kit, naming rights or tiered packages.

Typically raises

$1,500

$250–7,000 per sponsor

About $50 per organiser hour

Based on a 150-200 member club

Is it right for us?

Money: $500–2,000
Work: Weeks, part-time
Helpers: 1–2 people
Lead time: 2–4 months
Red tape: None

Fairly common: bigger clubs do it; smaller ones rarely formalise

People: 1-3
Organiser time: 20-40 per season
Lead time: 2-3 months before season
Up-front cost: $100
Risk: low (printing, signage)
Who can use it: No entity needed to sell sponsorship, but sponsors expect an invoice; a GST-registered club must charge GST.

Suits: Sports club or team

Less usual for: Primary or intermediate school, High school, Team going to a tournament or tour, Community group, marae or service club, Kapa haka, choir, theatre or band

When: Summer (Dec–Feb), Autumn (Mar–May), Start of the sports season

How big a job: Several weeks, part-time, 1–2 people

How it works

The scorecard and money example describe one version of this fundraiser. Other versions have different costs, helpers and results. Choose a version below before making your budget.

The money, as an example sum

Sell at $500 a sponsor package, keep $500, so 4 sponsor packages = $2,000, or about $1,900 after about $100 of costs. That’s about the typical result.

Using the figures on this page. Your prices and costs will differ.

Where the money figure comes from

Real NZ club prices: Clifton Rugby gold $2,500/yr, silver board $500 + sign, junior team $250; Marist North Harbour packages $500-$7,000; TidyHQ indicative tiers $500-$3,000/season for a 150-200 member club.

Last checked October 2026. Ran this? Tell us what you raised and we’ll use real results to improve the figures.

Ways to run it

Gold, Silver and Bronze packages: Offer clearly priced packages with benefits you can deliver. Agree the term and who supplies artwork.
Ground, fence and clubroom signage: Sell space on boundary fences, scoreboards, clubroom walls or the school hall.
Jersey and playing-kit sponsorship: A business pays for, or towards, playing kit in return for its logo on the jersey.
Naming rights: A business pays to have its name on a competition, trophy, event, room or facility.

Step by step

List what you can actually deliver and cost each item.
Build 3-4 tiers with specific deliverables and a price on the page.
Make a target list, starting with businesses already connected to members.
Approach in person or by short email; ask for a 15-minute chat.
Put the deal in a one-page agreement (term, deliverables, price, GST, renewal date).
Invoice, deliver, and keep evidence (photos, post screenshots).
Send a short end-of-season report and ask about renewal.

Plan your chosen version

These notes come from the October 2026 research. Figures describe separate examples, not extra money to add to the headline amount.

Ground, fence and clubroom signage

Sell space on boundary fences, scoreboards, clubroom walls or the school hall.

Separate example: $500 per sponsor after costs (estimate). one sign for one year

Clifton Rugby silver board $500/yr + sign. Others are ESTIMATES.

Helpers: 1-2. Lead time: 1-2 months. Cash risk: low (sponsor usually pays for the sign)

Map the sign positions and how visible each one is.
Check landowner and council rules.
Price by visibility; the sponsor pays for sign production.
Sign a one-page agreement with a term and a removal clause.
Install, photograph, and send the photo to the sponsor.
Remind sponsors 2 months before renewal.

Rules to check for this version

Check council or landowner signage consent before selling space.
Same GST and sponsor-deduction treatment as other sponsorship.

Tips for this version

Bundle a sign with social-media mentions so the sponsor gets more than a board on an empty weekday field.

Watch out for

Signs left up after the sponsor stops paying; faded signs damage both brands.

Sources: cliftonrugby.co.nz, taxtechnical.ird.govt.nz

Jersey and playing-kit sponsorship

A business pays for, or towards, playing kit in return for its logo on the jersey.

Separate example: $3,000 per sponsor after costs (estimate). one club or junior team kit

Northland Rugby (provincial union) advertised jersey spots at $5,000 + GST (high). Low and typical are ESTIMATES for club and junior teams.

Helpers: 1-2. Lead time: 3-4 months (kit has a manufacturing lead time). Cash risk: medium if you order kit before the sponsor has paid

Get kit quotes including logo print costs.
Set a price that at least covers kit cost plus a margin.
Offer front, back, and sleeve positions at different prices.
Get the logo files and sign-off before ordering.
Collect payment before ordering kit.
Send the sponsor a team photo in the kit.

Rules to check for this version

As for ‘Business sponsorship tiers’. The jersey is club property; if the sponsor buys kit it doesn't own, IRD treats it as paying for promotion, not buying an asset (IS 26/10 FS, van example).

Tips for this version

Training tops and hoodies are cheaper extra spots for smaller businesses.

Watch out for

Ordering kit before payment; the logo outlives a sponsor who stopped paying.

Sources: facebook.com, taxtechnical.ird.govt.nz

Naming rights

A business pays to have its name on a competition, trophy, event, room or facility.

Separate example: $3,000 per sponsor after costs (estimate). one trophy, event or facility name

ESTIMATE: a trophy or day event (low) up to a facility (high). Huia Rugby lists a 'Gold Naming Right' sponsor but no price.

Helpers: 1-3. Lead time: 3-12 months. Cash risk: low

Decide what can be named and for how long.
Check your constitution and any funder conditions (some grant-funded assets limit naming).
Set a price per year and a minimum term.
Approach the 3-5 businesses most likely to value it.
Write a contract: term, renewal, exit, what happens if the business is sold or disgraced.
Update signage, website and fixtures.

Rules to check for this version

For multi-year prepaid deals, IRD says the sponsor spreads the deduction over the years (IS 26/10 FS, Joey example).
If naming comes with a private benefit to the owner (e.g. fee discounts for their child), only part is deductible (IS 26/10 FS, Bruce example).

Tips for this version

Name trophies and day events first; low risk and easy to sell.

Watch out for

Locking in a cheap long-term naming deal on a valuable asset.

Sources: taxtechnical.ird.govt.nz, sporty.co.nz

Getting the word out

Even a well-run plan fails if nobody hears about it. There are two asks, and the first one goes out first.

Ask for help: A member who knows the business owner to make the ask.
Ask people to buy: Local businesses to sign up as sponsors.
When to start: Ask for helpers first, as soon as the date is set. Start the public ask about 6–8 weeks out, and book newsletter and paper notices before that: small newsletters close early.

Where to put it

Asking people yourselfMost yeses come from someone asking directly. Give every member a short message they can send to family and workmates.
Email lists and group chatsYour members’ email list and the class, team or church group chats. Short, with one date or one link.
School, club and church newslettersYour own newsletter is free and read by the families most likely to say yes. Check when it closes.
Local Facebook pages and community groupsPost in your town’s community page and local groups (check their rules), and share from your group’s own page.

The full guide to getting the word out: every channel from flyers to the evening news, with lead times and costs.

What you’ll need

Place: Not neededNone needed
Landowner’s permission: Not needed
Council permit: Not needed
Food rules: Not neededNo food sold
Alcohol: Not neededNo alcohol sold
Gambling rules: Not neededNot gambling

Sponsorship is advertising income, not a donation, so no donation receipt; a GST-registered group charges GST. Signs on council land may need landowner consent.

Make more from it

Fence or clubroom signs in each tier
$250-1,000 per sponsor (estimate)
a visible deliverable sponsors can photograph
Jersey logo for the top tier
often $1,000+ (estimate)
the most-valued placement

Stack it: on its own, about $1,500. With the 2 priced add-ons above, roughly

$3,100est.

Tips

Offer a multi-year discount (Clifton: $2,500 single year, $2,250/yr for three years).

Watch out for

Unpriced prospectuses; promising reach you can't show; forgetting to deliver what was promised.