The Fijian Drua performing the Na Bole before a Super Rugby Pacific clash. Photo: AAP / www.photosport.nz
The Super Rugby Pacific and Super W will see Fiji's Drua franchise continue in the two competitions after the Australian government confirmed its financial backing for another four years.
The sponsorship comes through the PacificAus Sports Program, a flagship initiative of the Australian government, which made a funding commitment of $AU52 million to the Drua franchise from 2019 to 2023.
The new sponsorship deal will run from 2024.
Fijian Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka said the deal will allow the country's young people the "opportunity to dare to dream about a life that sports can offer them".
"Within two years of engagement in the Super Rugby competitions, we have seen the return of your investment and support in the lives of our families and communities," Rabuka said.
"Our young people now have the opportunity to dare to dream about a life that sports can offer them.
"Your contribution to our sporting teams through the PacificAus Sports Program, which I'm told is the most successful Australian funded program in Fiji, will contribute to the development of our people in ways we cannot imagine right now."
Rabuka said on Monday that without Australia's support "we would never have seen the rise and success of our Drua men and women's teams".
Australia's Minister for Defence Industry, and International Development and the Pacific, Pat Conroy said the Australian government understood the power of rugby.
"Through the PacificAus Sports program, we are offering pathways for Fijian players, coaches and officials to train, exchange and engage with Australia's rugby community; and this enhances our people-to-people links and deepens our bonds, providing more opportunities for Fijian players, women and men, to compete in elite competitions," Conroy said.
Pat Conroy, left, and Sitiveni Rabuka at the sponsorship launch on Monday, 16 October 2023. Photo: Fiji Government