September 2, 2009

Nissui Becomes Title Sponsor of Nissui Tokyo 2009 Bledisloe Cup

Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd. (President & CEO: Naoya Kakizoe) is pleased to announce its decision to become title sponsor of the Bledisloe Cup Tokyo 2009, a classic rugby match between the New Zealand All Blacks and the Australia Wallabies, to be held at National Stadium in Tokyo on Saturday, October 31, 2009.

In conjunction with Nissui's sponsorship, the match will officially be called the Nissui Tokyo 2009 Bledisloe Cup (Nissui Bledisloe Cup).

Through the New Zealand Rugby Union, Nissui has been an official sponsor of the All Blacks since 1988 and also a sponsor of New Zealand Universities Rugby Football Council, Inc. since 2003. Nissui has continued to provide sponsorship as a means to promote the sport, as well as to deepen the mutual friendship, goodwill and cooperation between the Nissui Group and New Zealand, and facilitate its business activities that utilize not only New Zealand's, but also the world’s marine resources in a sustainable manner. Also as a way of strengthening international exchanges through the sport of rugby, Nissui, together with the Japan Rugby Football Union (JRFU), has supported the National University Championships every year, as well as the Japan Rugby Human Promotion Program run by JRFU. We proudly support rugby, a game whose core concepts of Fairness, Health, and Strength coincide with Nissui's own business tenets.

By having the Nissui brand in the title of the Cup's* composite logo and with "Nissui Global Links" added to the subtitle, as the event's sponsor, Nissui, on behalf of the Nissui group, aims to communicate its message through this international sports event. Nissui's sponsorship of this event comes at a particularly timely juncture as the company will be commemorating its 100th anniversary in 2011 and Japan will be hosting the Rugby World Cup in 2019.

(Message from Nissui's President)
We at Nissui are pleased to have been given the opportunity to send out our message to rugby fans around the globe through our sponsorship of this international sport event. In the past, Nissui’s support and sponsorship of rugby football have been highly regarded in fostering the relationship of mutual trust between New Zealand and Japan. And it is this very relationship without borders that has come to provide us with a crucial cornerstone as we engage in the marine products business.

It is an immense honor as well as a major commitment for us to become the title sponsor in the upcoming Nissui Tokyo 2009 Bledisloe Cup. We hope that by supporting the organization of this match we will be able to live up to the expectations of rugby fans around the world.

Naoya Kakizoe, President & CEO
Nippon Suisan Kaisha, Ltd.

*Bledisloe Cup
The Bledisloe Cup refers to the trophy awarded to the winner of these regular matches played between New Zealand and Australia. It is named after Lord Bledisloe, the Governor-General of New Zealand from 1930-1935, who was instrumental in strengthening New Zealand's rugby team and who donated the trophy. The first series of matches took place in 1932. The Bledisloe Cup is one of rugby's premier world-class matches and is considered to be a Full Blood Match between two of the world’s top-level teams. The Cup, which will be contested for the 78th time this year, is steeped in tradition and authority.

Bledisloe Cup 2009 Schedule (4 matches)

(*1) Materials: Cup title and composite title

(*2) Materials: Poster of Nissui Tokyo 2009 Bledisloe Cup