Budget carrier shows it means business with Melbourne Victory sponsorship deal

Budget airline Bonza is set to become the only carrier in the country with its name on the shirts of a national sports team despite it yet to carry a single passenger.

Bonza CEO Tim Jordan with the airline’s first Boeing 737 Max 8 at Sunshine Coast Airport.

An airline that is yet to carry a single passenger is set to become the only carrier in the country with its name on the shirts of a national sports team.

Bonza, which is still awaiting regulatory approval to operate domestic flights in Australia, will be the “principal partner” of A-League team Melbourne Victory.

The four-season deal worth up to $8m will see the budget carrier’s name and logo emblazoned on the front of Victory players’ jerseys providing lucrative publicity for the carrier.

It’s a bold move for the low- cost carrier and its owner, 777 Partners, will take a minority stake in the football club.

During the pandemic, Qantas discontinued its sponsorship of the Wallabies and Virgin Australia ended its naming rights deal with the V8 Supercars.

Speaking in Melbourne on Wednesday, Bonza chief executive Tim Jordan said the partnership with Melbourne made a lot of sense.

“Bonza’s ambitions are not only to service Melbourne to many places currently unserviced from the city, but becoming a principal partner allows us to insert ourselves into the wider population,” Mr Jordan said. “It makes absolute sense on a bilateral basis because of our footprint and the fact we want to challenge and do things a little differently in our chosen industries.”

Bonza had hoped to be airborne by September but the longer than expected process of regulatory approval meant it could now be next year by the time the airline begins flying.

The initial plan included 17 destinations and 27 routes, 93 per cent of which were not currently serviced by any airline. Three Boeing 737 Max 8s would operate the flights.

Although the airline would not carry Victory players to games, Bonza chief commercial officer Carly Povey said it looked forward to flying the club’s fans.