Sharks swim into new era

THE branding of the Sharks has been jazzed up to reflect the new era they have embarked on with their American investors, MVM Holdings.

The Sharks have had an injection of world-class talent and are playing in a new international competition, the United Rugby Championship. They have decided to freshen up “Sharkie” to attract new fans, while the city name Durban now features prominently alongside the Sharks emblem to ensure the world is in no doubt as to the Sharks’ home town.

The Sharks CEO, Eduard Coetzee, explains: “Re-igniting the passion for the brand amongst our loyal supporters not just in South Africa, but globally, is the driving force behind the rebrand as we broaden our reach to new markets.

“The golden thread running through this repositioning of the brand is our fans. We are keeping our loyal fans at the centre of everything we do and we want our fans to be part of this incredible journey and evolution of The Sharks brand.”

When rugby turned professional in South Africa in 1996, the Sharks were pathfinders when they changed their name from Natal to The Sharks, and out went the banana as an emblem, and in came Sharkie.

The fun-loving mascot has been tweaked slightly. The changes include the placement of his dorsal fin higher up his back to make him more menacing while he is now framed in a shield to signify “warrior roots”.

There is a new slogan – “Fear The Fin” – to “portray us as fierce east coast predators” and the Sharks implore their fans to adopt this as a slogan to chant at matches.

The old logo will still appear on the URC playing jersey for the 2022/2023 season, due to an eight-month kit production lead time, however, the new logo will be debuted on the Sharks’ kit for their first foray into the Heineken Champions Cup later this year.