The Hertz Corp. announced in a Jan. 30 press release that Hertz New Zealand signed a two-year agreement to become the naming rights sponsor of the New Zealand International Sevens Tournament, effective immediately. The first tournament took place this last weekend on Feb. 3-4.

The inaugural Hertz Sevens rugby event was part of the annual HSBC Sevens World Series, which has become so popular that rugby sevens has now been accepted as an official Olympic sport, and will debut at the 2016 games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Michel Taride, president of Hertz International and executive vice president of Hertz Corp., said: "New Zealand International Sevens is a major annual event on the national sports calendar, featuring teams from 16 countries, attracting 35,000 fans to games and generating a massive television viewing audience in New Zealand and internationally. We're delighted that Hertz New Zealand has secured the naming rights for the New Zealand International Sevens Tournament in 2012 and 2013, not only because of the event's popularity in New Zealand but also because rugby sevens worldwide is about to be elevated to the status of an Olympic sport."

"For Hertz, this sponsorship opportunity is ideal to increase awareness of our brand and introduce New Zealanders to Horatio, our new global goodwill ambassador," he added.

To help build awareness of both the Hertz Sevens and Horatio, Hertz New Zealand has established a Horatio Facebook site at www.facebook.com/horatioNewZealand. This site will offer information, competitions and prizes to rugby sevens fans.