The Canberra Raiders will don iconic foundation sponsor Canberra Milk on their jerseys once again in 2021, after the club reached a new deal with the brand.
The announcement comes after major sponsor Huawei announced last month they would walk away from their deal with a year to run on their contract.
The Raiders are still expected to land a new primary sponsor for 2022 onwards, but the club will savour the boost the beloved brand will bring, according to CEO Don Furner.
"They've been with us for 38 years. We hit a bit of a bad patch there a month ago and they stepped straight up," Furner said.
"To have two iconic brands back together, back on the front, is fantastic for Canberra and fantastic for us.
“I have no doubt the 2021 jerseys and training apparel are going to be very well received by our members and fans.”
Capitol Chilled Foods Australia's managing director Steve Ness explained the significance of the upcoming year and their new partnership with the Raiders.
“The Milk Authority of the ACT was established in 1971, so next year is our 50th anniversary,” Ness said.
“What better way to celebrate this than by returning our flagship brand Canberra Milk to the front of jersey of Canberra’s premier sporting team.”
Coach Ricky Stuart also expressed his excitement for the new deal.
"I remember this great jumper here. I played in it myself ... We take a lot of pride in the Milk, it's a wonderful slogan," Stuart said. "'Up the milk' goes back a long time.
"It's something that when you talk about our fans, they are very proud of the Canberra milk branding. When you do go back and look at a lot of the old photos with some of our greats - it's something strong there with the emblem of the milk."