CyberCX signs new partnership deals with the AFL and the Magpies
Accenture-owned cybersecurity consultancy CyberCX has expanded its sponsorship of the Collingwood Football Club, while also striking a deal with the AFL as its official security partner.
Originally forged in 2014, CyberCX’s expanded partnership with the Collingwood Football Club now brings together what is the biggest footy team in the land with, since the firm’s reported $1 billion sale to Accenture, the world’s largest professional services firm.
As part of the expanded deal as official cybersecurity and app partner, CyberCX branding will now appear on the interchange bench at the Magpies’ home and away games at the MCG and Marvel, the latter which has previously been jazzed up with the help of Accenture.
“CyberCX is a mission-driven organisation dedicated to securing our communities, and nothing brings our communities together like sports,” said CyberCX CEO John Paitaridis. “Collingwood is a leading organisation in Australia’s sporting landscape, and we’re proud of the work we have delivered for the club over the past two years and look forward to strengthening our partnership.”
The club’s cyber defence
To date, CyberCX has worked closely with the CFC to bolster its cyber defences by providing 24/7 monitoring of the club’s digital environment through its sovereign security operations centre (SOC), while working to detect threats, conduct penetration tests for internal and external networks, and uplifting security awareness and capabilities across all levels of the organisation.
Paitaridis continued: “At CyberCX we see first-hand how the global threat environment is deteriorating. Our 2026 threat report revealed that cyber extortion is now the number one type of incident confronting organisations, while financially motivated attacks are taking longer to detect. This impacts sporting clubs and codes, which face an increasingly hazardous range of threats.”
Speaking on the expanded partnership, Collingwood CEO Craig Kelly added: “CyberCX’s expertise has been invaluable in strengthening the club’s cyber defence. Working with the firm gives us confidence that our information is protected, and in today’s digital world, safeguarding data isn’t just about the club, it’s about protecting our players, staff, members, and supporters from threats.”
AFL
The new deal with Collingwood follows CyberCX’s recent sponsorship agreement with the AFL, as official cyber partner of both the men’s and women’s leagues and as ARC naming rights partner at Marvel, with the review system getting more of a work out this year following the introduction of the last touch out of bounds – or ‘lasso’ – rule, and some confusion around its specifics.
As part of the two-year agreement, which follows similar deals with the Australian Open and Rugby Australia, CyberCX will provide the full range of security services covering managed detection, incident response, and offensive security and assurance. AFL clubs will also have the opportunity to partake in a cyber assessment program aimed at driving uplift initiatives and boosting maturity.
“We know there is always an ongoing cyber risk across the world, and this partnership will provide a safe and secure experience for all of our fans in the knowledge their personal information is protected at all points in the fan engagement lifecycle, helping to secure our game from the grassroots to elite level,” stated the AFL’s commercial general manager Peta Webster.
