Major partner tie-up secures Lynx development and community work until 2029
The Perth Lynx and mining giant Rio Tinto have agreed a three-year extension to their partnership, keeping the company as a major supporter of the Women’s National Basketball League (WNBL) club until the end of the 2028–29 season. The deal underpins the Lynx’s player development pathways and a range of community activities across both metropolitan and regional Western Australia.
Under the extended arrangement Rio Tinto will retain naming rights to the Rio Tinto Perth Lynx Academy and Draft Combine — the programme the club uses to identify and nurture emerging female basketball talent — and will back community initiatives including the club’s Mental Health Round and Community Bay attendance scheme.
- Partnership extended to conclude at the end of the 2028–29 season.
- Rio Tinto maintains naming rights to the Lynx Academy and Draft Combine.
- Planned pre-season game in Karratha with player appearances and open training sessions.
The agreement also includes plans to stage a Perth Lynx pre-season fixture in Karratha during the term of the partnership, accompanied by player visits, open training and other community engagement activity intended to broaden the club’s reach into regional areas.
Sports Entertainment Network, which is the majority owner of the Perth Lynx licence, highlighted the significance of the corporate support for both on-court performance and off-court programmes. In a statement the group’s chief executive said the partnership transcended sponsorship, emphasising its role in creating opportunities for young athletes and supporting regional communities.
“Rio Tinto has been an incredible supporter of the Perth Lynx and women’s basketball, and we are thrilled to continue this partnership for another three seasons,” Sports Entertainment Network chief executive Craig Hutchison said. “What makes this relationship so valuable is the impact it has beyond the basketball court.”
What the extension means for talent pathways and local communities
The Lynx Academy and Draft Combine have become a central element of the club’s talent identification structure. Continued sponsorship from Rio Tinto will preserve the academy’s role in offering a route from grassroots participation to elite competition for young female players.
Support for the club’s Community Bay initiative will also be maintained, a scheme that increases access to matches for Western Australians who might otherwise be excluded from attending. Meanwhile, Rio Tinto will act as presenting partner of the Lynx’s Mental Health Round, set to coincide with the match against the Sydney Flames on 4 December, a fixture designed to raise awareness and stimulate conversation about mental health within the sport and beyond.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Partnership length | Through 2028–29 season (three-year extension) |
| Named programme | Rio Tinto Perth Lynx Academy & Draft Combine |
| Community events | Pre-season game in Karratha; Mental Health Round; Community Bay |
For Perth Lynx supporters and regional basketball participants, the renewed partnership offers continuity at a time when many clubs worldwide are seeking sustainable funding models. The arrangement secures a stream of investment into development programmes that the club says have been effective in identifying and promoting talent.
Beyond the immediate competitive aims of the WNBL side, Rio Tinto’s backing is framed by the club as part of a broader social commitment: supporting mental-health initiatives, expanding access to fixtures through Community Bay, and staging regional outreach that brings elite players to communities outside the capital. Those elements were singled out by the club’s owners as central to the value of the relationship.
While the commercial nature of elite sport inevitably focuses attention on results, this extension underlines the wider role professional clubs play in community sport development. By securing sponsorship for the academy and community programmes, the Lynx will be able to continue offering clear pathways for young players and maintain a presence in parts of Western Australia that benefit from visiting fixtures and outreach activity.
The deal reinforces a growing trend among professional women’s teams where long-term corporate partnerships are used to stabilise programmes and amplify social initiatives, with an explicit focus in this case on both athlete development and mental-health awareness.
