‘The nation cares’: The groundbreaking QR code campaign that will put Australian sporting stars on the map

One of Australia’s most successful national sporting teams has ditched the famous green and gold uniform to launch a powerful new campaign aimed at attracting sponsors who can put the Steelers up in lights where they belong. The defending wheelchair rugby world champions and world No.2 should be one of the most talked about teams in the country, but they’re about to enter a major stretch without a team sponsor. It’s why they’ve embarked on a revolutionary “Officially Unsponsored” campaign where players will sport white uniforms with a giant QR code to put the Steelers in the shop front window for brands looking for a unique partnership. “We’re looking to take that next step in our sports journey,” Wheelchair Rugby Australia chief executive Chris Nay told the NewsWire. “While we’ve got some beautiful community and events-based partnerships and sponsorships – and have done for a long time – for whatever reason, the Australian Steelers haven’t secured that right fit. “We probably haven’t done a good enough job introducing ourselves to the general public or corporate Australia in that way, so we felt that this campaign was a bold way to present ourselves as an option for people to get involved with the Australian Steelers.” A New Bond Wheelchair rugby participation has hit record levels in Australia, while there was a 243 per cent increase in ticketed attendance at the 2025 Wheelchair Rugby World Challenge compared with the previous year. Australia won the most recent world championships in 2022, with Steelers captain Chris Bond representing his country four times at the Paralympics where he’s won two gold medals and one bronze. “Wheelchair rugby reshaped how I see myself and what I believe is possible,” he said. “We don’t just compete; we commit everything we have to this sport every time we take the court. “Our team is excited by this campaign because it’s a bold new way to connect with not just any sponsor but the right partner. “This campaign isn’t about filling space on a jersey; it’s a statement of intent. We’re looking for a brand that shares our ambition, matches our standards, and wants to align with a team that leads with heart, excellence and purpose. “Our new kits are an open invitation to brands ready to partner with one of Australia’s most driven, resilient and high-performing teams.” Cracking The Code While the team has achieved plenty of success, Nay says the next step is converting that into public recognition. The groundbreaking QR code links people to the SponsorSHOP, an Australian-first digital marketplace where brands can explore a curated range of sponsorship opportunities for the Steelers, from naming rights and apparel partnerships to event and campaign collaborations and more. Aussies have grown accustomed to the codes since Covid, with the Steelers’ innovative move launched to hopefully spark interest across the country. “We’ve got a really aligned playing group around the concept and the model, and I think that’s something that really empowers us to move towards the campaign,” Nay said. “The Steelers are one of our most decorated national teams, and effectively we see it as a really good opportunity to profile that and put ourselves in the shop window more formally to align ourselves with partners that want to help us succeed. “It’s certainly not born from a financial need or us falling into hard times. “It’s more or less an opportunity for us to showcase our sport and what we’re willing to do as a partner to say ‘wow, this is a sport that moves differently and is really innovative and pioneering in the way that they’re going about their work’.” “That’s the people we want to align with. Rising tides lift all boats, and we see an opportunity for a brand getting involved with us at a significant level both financially and then also through the exposure that it could bring as a good thing for our sport. Nay said the Steelers the QR code campaign was also about spreading the word about the team. “We believe that we’ve got an incredible story, an incredible sport and an incredible team, but a lot of people around the country are unaware of what that story is,” he said. “A QR code is something you use when you want to learn more information or you need to find more information, so for us, it was a good way to publicly put ourselves out there to the broader Australian community. “It says that if you want to find out more information about who we are and what we’re doing, we felt it was a striking visual way to do that and served its two purposes for corporate Australia to put us in the shop window, and more broadly to build awareness for our team around the country.” Finding The Spark The Officially Unsponsored campaign comes in what shapes as one of the biggest years for wheelchair rugby in Australia. The world championships will be held in Brazil later this year, while there’s a world challenge event in Adelaide in April, as well as a women’s World Cup at the end of 2026. Nay hopes the campaign can be the spark needed to find an aligned brand that helps turn the Steelers into a household name. “We’ve got some lofty expectations and goals for our team,” he said. “One of those is to make sure that when the Steelers play, the nation cares. I feel like that’s a really realistic goal for us to shoot towards. “Paralympic support often comes in four-year cycles, and we want to be the first para-sport team to effectively transcend that (and be seen) as the household names of the Boomers, the Matildas and the Wallabies that unite our nation. “If the broader community knew it, I feel like it’s one of the stories that has the ability to unite our nation. “So hopefully through the Unsponsored campaign, we’re able to do that and see support come in for the Steelers.”