ISC has confirmed that the company will sever ties with the NRL at seasons end, reports The Daily Telegraph.
With the continued worry of COVID-19, the official apparel and merchandise parter of eight clubs have decided to walk away from the game leaving a huge gap with those clubs.
ISC currently have apparel and merchandise with Sydney, Canberra, Parramatta, South Sydney, Wests Tigers, Brisbane, North Queensland and Melbourne.
ISC’s chief executive Jason Schulman listed the struggles that COVID-19 has produced from a business standpoint as a big reason as to why the company will walk away.
“The licensing apparel model for professional sporting teams in general has been under pressure for some time due to a number of factors,” Schulman said.
“With the COVID-19 global pandemic and resulting effect on both the sporting and retail landscapes having a devastating and unprecedented impact on all sporting bodies, entities and related businesses, the ISC Licensing business has been no different.”
The clubs associated with ISC have been in discussion in recent weeks about the next moves. Each club has different deals with the company. Some are lucky enough that their deals expire this year so it won't have as much of a financial impact, while others will have to work through it after being contracted long-term.
Schulman also made it known that the company will move away from AFL club's also and will strictly just continue to support grassroots sport with their team wear.