• Earlier today OPPO and SA Rugby held an event to announce that the smartphone maker will be the official handset partner to the Springboks.
• This is the latest local partnership announced by OPPO, having previously worked with Orlando Pirates and SA Fashion Week.
• OPPO says the choice to partner with the three-time world champions was an easy one.

Since it officially launched in South Africa only two years ago, OPPO has looked to partner with a number of local organisations. The latest is SA Rugby, with OPPO announced as the official handset partner to the Springboks at an event held earlier today.

As mentioned, this is not the first time that OPPO has looked to partner locally, having done so with Soweto giants Orlando Pirates and the long-running SA Fashion Week of late.

“The latest partnership, with what is arguably the country’s most globally recognised brand, the Springboks, is a further demonstration of OPPO’s commitment to making a substantial contribution to the domestic economy,” the smartphone maker noted in a press release sent to Hypertext.

“We are honoured and delighted to partner with the world champions in what we believe will be a progressive new chapter in the story of both organisations. The Springboks are an elite global sporting brand, recognised the world over, and are associated with a long and illustrious tradition of success,” added Avashnee Moodley, head of Marketing at OPPO South Africa.

As such, the choice to partner with the three-time world champions was an easy one.

“We are very excited to welcome OPPO to our family of sponsors as official handset device partner to SA Rugby and the Springboks. Economically we are living in challenging times and it’s wonderful to see companies commit to sponsoring rugby. To have one of the biggest manufacturers of smartphones and other electronic devices in the world in our corner, at a time when connectivity comes at a premium, is also great for us at SA Rugby,” highlighted Mark Alexander, president of SA Rugby, regarding the partnership.

At the time of writing it remains to be seen if the partnership extends beyond the senior Springbok team, and includes the SA Sevens, Women’s, and Junior teams as well, but you can certainly expect to see many Boks with OPPO phones in hand in the near future.