Perth Bears toast first WA sponsor with brewer
The Perth Bears have defied early scepticism by landing another major sponsor, with a local brewery becoming the latest business to back the NRL newcomers.
October 26, 2025 - 8:30PM
Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga pouring beers at Gage Roads Brewery, Fremantle. Picture: Colin Murty
Perth’s new NRL side has snared its first homegrown sponsor, as it works to dispel fears it could struggle to garner support in its local market.
The Perth Bears will on Monday announce that they have secured Western Australia-based Gage Roads Brewing as the club’s first shorts sponsor, following a $1m deal to feature the Budget Direct logo on the sleeves of their playing jerseys.
Bears chief executive Anthony De Ceglie said the Gage Roads sponsorship – the brewer’s first such foray into NRL – was indicative of the broader interest in the club from companies in WA and around the country.
“We feel very confident, off the back of Budget Direct, off the back of Gage Roads, and off the back of some partnerships we’ll be announcing shortly, that we could be the most commercially successful team in the NRL before we play a game of football,” Mr De Ceglie told The Australian.
While the dollar value of the Gage Roads deal has not been disclosed, the Bears believe the terms put them on track to break the NRL shorts sponsorship record once deals over the remaining two shorts panels are secured.
Perth secured the 18th NRL licence earlier this year, formally resurrecting the old North Sydney Bears in the process, after the Cook government agreed to tip in $65m in support.
But the birth of the Perth Bears has
been a complicated affair, with WA’s dominant media company appearing to boycott the team and some of the state’s
most prominent business names both publicly and privately ruling out any commercial support.
Perth Bears chief executive Anthony De Ceglie at the Gage Roads Brewery. Picture: Colin Murty
Mr De Ceglie’s former role as editor of The West Australian newspaper put the club off-side with some of those prominent Perth business figures who had previously found themselves in Mr De Ceglie’s sights, including John Poynton and Andrew Forrest.
Back in May, soon after
Mr De Ceglie’s surprise appointment to the Bears,
Mr Poynton told The Australian that Mr De Ceglie would be “taught a lesson” by those who had not forgotten how they were treated during his time at the helm of the paper.
The Gage Roads deal, however, shows that at least one high-profile WA company is willing to back the team and could prompt other local groups to follow suit.
The media landscape, too, has changed in favour of Mr De Ceglie and the Bears since the licence was secured. Southern Cross Austereo’s merger with Seven West Media and
the retirement of Seven West’s billionaire chairman Kerry Stokes appears to have improved the Bears’ prospects, given Southern Cross’ Triple M network is the highest-rating NRL radio broadcaster.
Channel 7 last week also secured the broadcast rights to the Rugby League World Cup in what appears to be a thawing in attitude towards the code by a network that has historically been overwhelmingly AFL-focused.
The Bears’ sponsorship pitch centres on its broad geographical appeal. Beyond being the monopoly NRL offering west of the Nullarbor, its ties to the North Sydney Bears give it reach into NSW while its recruitment of Mal Meninga as its inaugural coach will build its case to be the second team of every Queenslander.
From left: Gage Roads founder John Hoedemaker, Perth Bears coach Mal Meninga and club CEO Anthony De Ceglie enjoy a brew at the Gage Roads Brewery in Fremantle. Picture: Colin Murty
Meninga, who poured beers at Gage Roads’ Fremantle brewery to celebrate the deal, said the sponsorship was symbolic of the support the Bears have received.
“This partnership highlights the importance of commercial partnerships with the business community of Perth as we look to achieve success,” he said.
Gage Roads founder John Hoedemaker said the company was excited to back the Bears and help support rugby league in WA.
“We acknowledge the amazing history of the Bears and are excited to raise a stubby, tinny or glass with Bears’ fans from Perth, North Sydney and everywhere in between,” he said.
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/na...r/news-story/e90532f833234a9dbbe26e8973b84245
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perthbears.com.au
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ministryofsport.com
www.miragenews.com
www.nationaltribune.com.au
