Adora Fertility aligns with Sydney Swans in landmark sponsorship deal

Fertility and footy might seem like unlikely partners, but a new sponsorship between IVF clinic Adora Fertility and the Sydney Swans is hoping to turn that notion on its head.

Adora Fertility has struck a two-year sponsorship deal with the Swans in what is the first-ever partnership of its kind with an AFL club. The partnership covers both the club’s AFL and AFLW teams and sees Adora become the Swans’ official Pride partner.

It’s a partnership that Mandy Cooper, Adora’s national marketing manager, is hoping will break down stigma around fertility, raise awareness of reproductive health and change the conversation around accessibility and low-cost fertility treatments.

Conversations between the Swans and Adora started in 2024 but moved quickly. The brand announced the deal just weeks out from the new AFL season - with a baby race.

“The response has been incredible,” Cooper said. “There’s real power in sport. But what attracted us to the Sydney Swans more than anything else was their community and sense of inclusiveness. We felt like a team right from the start.”

With five clinics across the country, Adora hopes the partnership will raise awareness of reproductive health on the national stage and highlight the accessibility of its low-cost treatments.

“The key thing for us is that this is national - it’s not just a Sydney play,” she said. “A lot of patients come to us through word-of-mouth and if we can get people talking about their fertility journey - not just women, but also men - then that will help a lot of people who might otherwise suffer in silence.”

Cooper added that despite being the first fertility clinic to partner with an AFL club, the alignment felt natural right from the start.

“There has been so much synergy with the Swans; they are a loved and well-respected club and strive for inclusivity. These are the values that we subscribe to,” she said.

Multi-channel activation

Adora is looking to the AFL and the Swans as a way to drive conversations around cost considerations and will use match-day activations at home games, fan days and key activities around Pride and the Sydney Mardi Gras to further the conversation.

Cooper said one in every 18 babies in Australia is born through IVF, yet the conversation around fertility remains largely private or misunderstood.

“We want to break down the stigma around trying to conceive and we hope that by talking about fertility, we can help people make informed decisions around reproductive health,” she said.

And unlike many high-spending competitors in the healthcare space, Cooper said Adora operates with a lean marketing budget and said every dollar must deliver impact and value.

“We don’t have hundreds of thousands of dollars to spend on marketing; we are a low-cost offering and we want to keep our overheads low. This partnership represents real value for money.

“It ticks a lot of boxes and we just want people to know they don’t have to give up on their dream of a family just because of cost.”

Tom Harley, CEO of the Sydney Swans, welcomed the partnership and said Adora’s focus on family and accessibility aligns with the values of his team.

“We strive to be a place where everyone feels welcome and included,” he said. “Adora Fertility is a well-respected company that helps Australians achieve their dreams of growing a family, so we are thrilled to welcome them to our Swans family.”

As part of its role as the Swans’ official Pride partner, Adora Fertility will also focus on supporting fertility discussions within the LGBTQIA+ community.

“This partnership gives us an incredible opportunity to bring fertility conversations to the forefront, whether it’s helping LGBTQIA+ individuals and couples explore their family-building options or supporting AFL players in understanding their fertility health during and after their playing careers,” Vanessa Ferguson, CEO of Adora Fertility, said.