A French porn website is making a bold foray into rugby sponsorship, and it may increase live attendance. French rugby club US Carcassonne announced on Thursday that a porn website will be the match sponsor for their game against Biarritz next month.
The site, ‘Jacquie & Michel’, said in a statement: “Commitment, power, endurance and vigour are all values that Jacquie & Michel share with (Carcassonne coach) Christian Labit’s men.”
The Carcassonne players will wear shirts sporting the website’s logo during warm-up before changing into their usual gear for the game. The stadium will also promote the website through advertising.
And the gimmick is already working. Backing their unusual choice of sponsorship in a statement, Carcassonne general manager Christine Manardeau-Planchenault said the club has seen a surge in ticket prices since the announcement was made.
“It’s about being part of a fun and offbeat communication,” said Menardeau-Planchenault.
“There will be nothing that will shock anyone. Today, like many clubs, it’s hard to get people to the stadium, so we thought about a way to create a buzz and decided to partner with them.”
Jacquie & Michel said in a statement that they felt they shared similar values with the club.
“Commitment, power, endurance and vigour are all values that Jacquie & Michel share with (Carcassonne coach) Christian Labit’s men.”
It’s not the first time a sports team have taken on a porn website as an official sponsor. The site also sponsored the reserve team of Belgian football club Villers-devant-Orval in 2015.
In 2017, the porn site Redtube sponsored a US amateur football team, Washington Square FC. Like most great ideas, the suggestion was made after a few of the players were enjoying a drink in a pub.
“He and I (former player Jaime Skelton) were slightly intoxicated one night with a few other players and we were joking about getting sponsored by a Porn Company,” captain of the side Jon Klippert revealed the story behind the sponsor.