Levergy Lands Liqui Moly South Africa to Localise World Rugby Partnership Ahead of RWC 2027

Image by RWC

Levergy has been appointed as the South African sponsorship agency for Liqui Moly, tasked with localising the German lubricant brand's global partnership with World Rugby ahead of the Men's Rugby World Cup 2027 in Australia. The mandate covers sponsorship strategy and activation as Liqui Moly looks to convert a marquee international rights deal into commercial traction on home turf.

World Rugby confirmed Liqui Moly earlier this year as an Official Partner and the Official Motor Lubricants Partner for both the Men's Rugby World Cup 2027 and the Women's Rugby World Cup 2029, a multi-event agreement that extends the brand's association with the sport through the end of the decade. Liqui Moly, an internationally recognised motor oil and additive specialist, the deal marks a significant step up in visibility at two of rugby's largest global events.

Levergy's brief is to translate that global rights position into local relevance: connecting the brand with South African rugby fans and consumers across the build-up to and duration of the tournament. The agency will handle activation on the ground, an area where it has built a track record of turning sponsorship rights into fan-facing campaigns with measurable commercial return.

Melicia Labuschagne, chief executive officer at Liqui Moly South Africa, said the agency's grasp of the brand was clear from the outset. "From our very first conversations, Levergy simply understood us. They recognised what we wanted to achieve and saw the opportunity rugby offers our brand…We're excited to work with a team that shares our goal of meaningfully connecting with South African rugby fans”

Rugby gives Liqui Moly a natural point of contact with consumers who already prize performance and reliability, values the brand is betting will transfer onto its products. The company is aiming to build experiences across South Africa's diverse fan base and cement its position in a local market where it competes with established lubricant brands for shelf space and mechanic loyalty.

Lindsey Rayner, managing director of Levergy, said the appointment reflects sponsorship's expanding role in commercial strategy. "The world's largest sporting events create opportunities that go beyond mere brand visibility. The best sponsorship deals create genuine connections with people, influence buying decisions, and contribute to long-term business growth. Liqui Moly has recognised how rugby can engage consumers authentically, and we're thrilled to help turn that goal into reality as we approach Rugby World Cup 2027."

The deal adds another global rights holder to Levergy's local sponsorship book, reinforcing its position as one of the agencies South African brands and international properties turn to when a worldwide partnership needs a local face.

World Rugby's agreement with Liqui Moly was struck at global level, with little reference to how the brand actually sells oil filters and additives in Durban or Johannesburg. Levergy's job is to close that gap: turning a logo on a partner list into something a South African car owner notices and acts on, a different skill from rights negotiation, and one local agencies are increasingly paid for. The bigger win for Levergy is the pattern it repeats: land the global partner once the rights deal is signed, then own the local execution for years, in this case through two Rugby World Cups. It is a model South African agencies have run before with cricket and football rights holders, and rugby remains fertile ground for it. What the announcement does not spell out is how much fixture access, hospitality and marketing budget the global deal actually hands down locally, and that will decide the outcome. A lubricant brand does not win on emotional association with a jersey. It wins on distribution and garage relationships, and on whether a fan who feels good about the sponsorship then buys the oil at the till.