Sponsors decide to pull the pin
SACKED Australian captain Steve Smith is a Weet-Bix kid no longer — cereal maker Sanitarium has torn up his sponsorship deal.
The company said WeetBix ambassadors represented the brand’s values of trust and integrity.
“Based on the ball tampering incident and the findings of Cricket Australia’s investigation, we are unable to continue our relationship with Steve Smith,” Sanitarium Australia general manager Todd Saunders said.
Investment manager Magellan earlier said it would end its Test naming rights deal with Cricket Australia over the incident, which was “so inconsistent with our values”.
Neither the company nor CA said how much the deal was worth when they reached it last August.
CA’s agreement with XXXX beer is safe, although its producer Lion said it was disappointed with what happened in South Africa.
In another blow to Smith, Commonwealth Bank dropped the former captain from his role as ambassador.
“While appreciating the work Steve Smith has done in partnership with us to support cricket for all Australians, in light of recent circumstances we have concluded our current arrangement with Steve as a sporting ambassador,” the lender said in a statement.
Meanwhile, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft’s sponsorships with athletics company ASICS were scrapped yesterday, following the lead of LG, which ended its partnership with David Warner on Wednesday.
“[The players’ actions] are not something that ASICS tolerates,” the company said.