The Australian government's ban preventing Huawei being part of the country's 5G network has cost the Canberra Raiders their major sponsor, meaning the Green Machine could begin their 2021 NRL charge with a blank space on the front of their jersey.
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A coronavirus pandemic makes the economic climate a tough one to find a major sponsor, with Raiders boss Don Furner admitting they might have to settle for less than the more than $1 million per year they got from Huawei.
The Raiders and Huawei only extended their partnership for an additional two years in 2019, which would have taken them through to the 10-year mark.
But the Chinese telecommunications giant has been forced to pull the pin on the deal a year early.
They'll remain as a Raiders sponsor in 2021 - they just won't be the major one - with their logo appearing on the back of the jersey and they'll retain naming rights of the Braddon centre of excellence.
It's believed Canberra were already talking to three businesses.
Furner was confident they would be able to find someone, but thought given the current global climate it would be unlikely to be another international company.
"We'll start the search now. The beauty of our relationship is that they're so open and upfront as early as they could be so we've got time to find someone," he said on Monday.
"It's a tough time for all businesses in Australia and around the world. We'll get out there and do our best.
"Our main aim this year will be to win the grand final - it would be a great way to thank Huawei for what they've done.
"We've spoken to a couple of companies, but it's a tough market at the moment so we've got to do our best and I'm quite confident we'll land somebody.
"We might not have somebody when we run out [next year]. We've done that before.
"We've just got to find the right partner and we're working on that."
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Huawei Australia chief corporate affairs officer Jeremy Mitchell said it was just their Australian sponsorships that were affected.
He said they would still be the Raiders' major sponsor if they hadn't been banned from being part of Australia's 5G rollout.
They initially signed on with the Green Machine back in 2012 and have been their longest ever major sponsor.
Mitchell left the door open for a comeback if the economic environment in Australia changed.
He's seen their staff drop from 1000 down to 100 following the ban.
"Absolutely. We would still be the sponsor," Mitchell said.
"This is a direct result of the 5G ban and the negative business environment for Chinese companies in Australia at the moment.
"We all know the trade war that's going on between the US and China and we're a pawn in that big game.
NRL ROUND 17
Saturday: Canberra Raiders v Sydney Roosters at Canberra Stadium, 7.35pm.
David Polkinghorne
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
Covering the Raiders, Cavalry, cycling and racing, plus everything else that involves sport in the ACT, for The Canberra Times. Basically I love sport and watching it is a full-time job. Email: david.polkinghorne@canberratimes.com.au
