Meet the new face of NRL
Adrian Proszenko and Josh Rakic
January 30, 2011
This is the face of rugby league. The NRL needs a superstar. Somebody as engaging off the field as on it to launch the season and be the ambassador for the code. Step forward Benji Marshall. The Wests Tigers playmaker has been chosen as the man to front the code as the game prepares for a new era under an independent commission.
And Marshall is already cashing in on his poster-boy status. Benji Inc is booming, with the Golden Boot winner's off-field earnings estimated to hit $500,000 for 2011 - more than any other league player.
The NRL is banking on Marshall, a big name with a big personality and the New Zealand captain, to head up the battle against the AFL's aggressive expansion into rugby league heartland.
One of his first assignments will be to front the NRL season launch, as well as play a part in the game's advertising campaign. ''To be asked to launch the season on behalf of club members is a real honour,'' Marshall told The Sun-Herald. ''I'm sure it's going to be a great year for rugby league and I'm keen to do whatever I can to promote our great game.''
NRL chief executive David Gallop said Marshall was the ideal choice as ambassador for the game. ''We talked about who would be appropriate to launch the season and if you look at what he did last year, he won the Four Nations with New Zealand and got the Wests Tigers to the finals,'' Gallop said.
''It's a real credit to him and the hard work he put in around those injuries. To play every game and then be the Four Nations-winning captain and Golden Boot winner, he just seemed to us to be a good fit.
'And the fact that he's a Kiwi is proof that the game is going gangbusters in New Zealand. There's a Rugby World Cup in New Zealand this year and yet the Warriors are going gangbusters - junior numbers are up an amazing amount. Benji has really grown into his profile and is a real ambassador for the game. He's good for the game.''
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Meanwhile, the business of Benji is booming. He is about to sign a lucrative contract with an international brand, which will bring his total number of endorsements to 10.
There is a coming book, tentatively titled The First Step, which will be ghost-written by Herald journalist Glenn Jackson and released by Hachette in October/November. Sony has the rights to a DVD of his life story. Zanerobe supplies his threads and Asics his shoes. Media deals with the Nine Network and Fairfax have been extended. Several other Benji brands are being renegotiated.
And then there's the Benji Marshall Foundation, dedicated to finding cures for childhood cancers.
Marshall's manager, Martin Tauber, has been busy indeed. ''Benji has become a brand in himself,'' Tauber said. ''We would get on average three or four inquiries or sponsorship proposals for him per week. We're selective in products and we give each product exclusivity in product category.
''We've made some mistakes in the beginning but we don't do that now. We tend to be more diligent in our approach. We did his own Benji Sport label, which turned out to be a disaster in the end. But we've learned from our mistakes.''
Marshall has been managed by Tauber since the age of 16\. He turns 26 next month. In that time, Tauber reckons he has knocked back about 40 potential endorsement deals. ''Benji is an exceptional talent and commercially he is so sought after,'' Tauber said. ''He would have to be up there with the top one or two players in union, league or soccer in this country.
''Long term, his future is television and print media. He has the face for it, the confidence for it and he's building up strengths in the areas television requires. I think it's something he will do very well in. He is unbelievably popular with young kids. They want to be like Benji, they want the step, the colour and charisma.
''He is the face of rugby league, he's the international player of the year and he's just won the Four Nations. He's an exceptional talent and he's matured enormously.''
Adrian Proszenko and Josh Rakic
January 30, 2011
This is the face of rugby league. The NRL needs a superstar. Somebody as engaging off the field as on it to launch the season and be the ambassador for the code. Step forward Benji Marshall. The Wests Tigers playmaker has been chosen as the man to front the code as the game prepares for a new era under an independent commission.
And Marshall is already cashing in on his poster-boy status. Benji Inc is booming, with the Golden Boot winner's off-field earnings estimated to hit $500,000 for 2011 - more than any other league player.
The NRL is banking on Marshall, a big name with a big personality and the New Zealand captain, to head up the battle against the AFL's aggressive expansion into rugby league heartland.
One of his first assignments will be to front the NRL season launch, as well as play a part in the game's advertising campaign. ''To be asked to launch the season on behalf of club members is a real honour,'' Marshall told The Sun-Herald. ''I'm sure it's going to be a great year for rugby league and I'm keen to do whatever I can to promote our great game.''
NRL chief executive David Gallop said Marshall was the ideal choice as ambassador for the game. ''We talked about who would be appropriate to launch the season and if you look at what he did last year, he won the Four Nations with New Zealand and got the Wests Tigers to the finals,'' Gallop said.
''It's a real credit to him and the hard work he put in around those injuries. To play every game and then be the Four Nations-winning captain and Golden Boot winner, he just seemed to us to be a good fit.
'And the fact that he's a Kiwi is proof that the game is going gangbusters in New Zealand. There's a Rugby World Cup in New Zealand this year and yet the Warriors are going gangbusters - junior numbers are up an amazing amount. Benji has really grown into his profile and is a real ambassador for the game. He's good for the game.''
\
\
Meanwhile, the business of Benji is booming. He is about to sign a lucrative contract with an international brand, which will bring his total number of endorsements to 10.
There is a coming book, tentatively titled The First Step, which will be ghost-written by Herald journalist Glenn Jackson and released by Hachette in October/November. Sony has the rights to a DVD of his life story. Zanerobe supplies his threads and Asics his shoes. Media deals with the Nine Network and Fairfax have been extended. Several other Benji brands are being renegotiated.
And then there's the Benji Marshall Foundation, dedicated to finding cures for childhood cancers.
Marshall's manager, Martin Tauber, has been busy indeed. ''Benji has become a brand in himself,'' Tauber said. ''We would get on average three or four inquiries or sponsorship proposals for him per week. We're selective in products and we give each product exclusivity in product category.
''We've made some mistakes in the beginning but we don't do that now. We tend to be more diligent in our approach. We did his own Benji Sport label, which turned out to be a disaster in the end. But we've learned from our mistakes.''
Marshall has been managed by Tauber since the age of 16\. He turns 26 next month. In that time, Tauber reckons he has knocked back about 40 potential endorsement deals. ''Benji is an exceptional talent and commercially he is so sought after,'' Tauber said. ''He would have to be up there with the top one or two players in union, league or soccer in this country.
''Long term, his future is television and print media. He has the face for it, the confidence for it and he's building up strengths in the areas television requires. I think it's something he will do very well in. He is unbelievably popular with young kids. They want to be like Benji, they want the step, the colour and charisma.
''He is the face of rugby league, he's the international player of the year and he's just won the Four Nations. He's an exceptional talent and he's matured enormously.''
