Hungry Jack’s to extend its NBL deal

Billionaire Jack Cowin will agree to a three-year extension for his Hungry Jack’s chain to sponsor Larry Kestelman’s NBL.

NBL owner Larry Kestelman with Hungry Jack’s owner Jack Cowin. Picture: Getty Images

Billionaire Jack Cowin will on Monday agree to a three-year extension for his Hungry Jack’s chain to sponsor Larry Kestelman’s National Basketball League, in a sign of confidence in one of the country’s fastest-growing sports leagues.

The deal will see Hungry Jack’s retained at a more lucrative amount than its current contract, which Mr Kestelman clinched with Mr Cowin on the eve of the 2017-18 season and continues through to mid-2023.

There is a possibility of a further extension to at least 2025.  Basketball is enjoying a renaissance in Australia and the major sponsor extension for the NBL comes at a time when other sports have been struggling to attract ­retail or commercial partners.

The A-League is set to lose Hyundai as its major sponsor after 15 years and governing body Football Federation Australia has lost a slew of sponsors. Cricket Big Bash League team Melbourne Renegades also revealed it was losing its principal partner Mars.

Mr Kestelman said the deal showed blue-chip brands had increasing confidence in the NBL, which attracted Hungry Jack’s back to the sport for the first time in 30 years and has also clinched deals with the likes of Qantas, Chemist Warehouse, Bunnings, Kmart and Aldi.

“Jack (Cowin) was cautious to start with. He had been there back in the previous glory days with the NBL and out for a long time. But we’ve done some innovative things with Hungry Jack’s, which have been popular. That has shown what you need to do with your partners now.

“You have to know what they want from a deal. I don’t confess to know exactly what they want, but I do know how to ask them. That is what we constantly do, ask our partners what outcomes they want.”

NBL club logos and information have been placed in Hungry Jack’s stores and on burger wrappers as part of the deal, but the most popular part of the contract has been free burger giveaways when opposing players have missed free-throws at certain stages of matches.

It has proven to be a popular part of the match for fans attending the games, and has also been featured on television broadcasts.

Mr Kestelman will in May celebrate the fifth anniversary of his $7m takeover of the NBL in a unique deal that resulted in a rare privatisation of an entire league.

Crowds since then have risen 50 per cent and the NBL this season has sold out about 85 per cent of its tickets this year. The league will begin its finals series late this week.

“There’s never been a better time for the NBL. Australian basketball has never been stronger and the game never more popular,” Mr Kestelman said.

“With our Next Stars program (of attracting young players from the US to the NBL) and innovative broadcast deals with Facebook and Twitch, we are attracting huge attention globally.

“The quality of the product on and off the court is world class and I firmly believe we are now the best basketball league outside of the NBA.”

Mr Kestelman, a property developer who is building the $800m luxury Capitol Grand apartment project in Melbourne, is also nearing a deadline for his negotiations with Tasmanian government authorities to gain control of a $200m mixed-use commercial project to underpin a refurbished stadium in Hobart which would house a new NBL team.

He has been locked in negotiations with local and state government officials since last year, with Mr Kestelman revealing he has a February 29 deadline for a deal to be clinched.

“That is the time frame we are looking at in order to have a team in the NBL within two seasons. Otherwise we will not have enough to deliver that.”