Amazon is reportedly set to sponsor Prince Harry’s Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 in a big-money deal.
Jeff Bezos’s company is understood to have agreed to sponsorship terms over the event – with the expectation that Meghan will make an appearance.
The deal would see Amazon’s streaming arm Prime Video rival Netflix, which was behind the lifestyle shows about the Sussexes.
It is understood that Prince Harry, who founded the competition, and the Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 need a £20million cash injection to cover the costs of next year’s competition which will be held in Birmingham.
From July 10 to July 17, the city will ‘welcome 550 wounded, injured and sick service personnel and veterans, and their families, from 25 nations’.
The Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 is a multi-sport event for wounded, injured and sick military veterans first held in 2014.
‘They will compete in 12 adaptive sports to support their recovery and inspire others through their resilience’, according to the Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 website.
Amazon’s sponsorship could save the day for the Duke of Sussex after aircraft manufacturer Boeing, previously a major backer of the games, chose not to renew its sponsorship after the last event two years ago.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex at the Whistler Welcome Celebration at the 2025 Invictus Games in Whistler, Canada on February 10 last year
Prince Harry and his wife Meghan Markle visit the sitting volleyball section of the fifth edition of the Invictus Games in The Hague on April 17, 2022
Harry attends the launch of the INSPIRE: Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 education programme, which was inspired by the Invictus Games, during his visit to Ninestiles School on September 18
Sources have now claimed that it is getting ‘expensive’ to run the competition – and Amazon ‘wanted to get involved’ in the games.
A person familiar with the matter told The Sun: ‘The deal would be a shot in the arm for Invictus and Harry… Amazon wanted to get involved.
‘They already do a lot to back veterans, including employment programmes.
‘The games are a big undertaking and expensive. And it’s interesting Amazon are Netflix’s big rival.’
The source added that the deal shows the Sussexes are ‘moving in a different direction with a new partner’, away from Netflix towards Amazon.
Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 is an independent UK-based charity and the UK Organising Committee established to deliver the games in Birmingham in 2027.
The Invictus Games Foundation is a separate UK charity, established in 2014, with different budgets and purposes, which governs the delivery of the Invictus Games.
An Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 spokesman said: ‘Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 is excited about the partnerships taking shape as we build towards the Games next year.
‘We’ve already announced some great partners and look forward to welcoming more who share our ambition for the Games in the months ahead.
‘Invictus Games Birmingham 2027 is supported through a combination of UK Government underwriting, commercial partnerships, charitable support and in-kind contributions and will continue to secure additional income as we move towards the Games.’
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