Diageo pulls sponsorship as London Irish signs Paddy Jackson

London Irish Rugby club’s decision to recruit Paddy Jackson has cost the club a near 30-year relationship with drinks giant Diageo which had been one of its main sponsors.

Jackson and his fellow former Ulster and Ireland teammate Stuart Olding were unanimously acquitted by a jury of raping the same woman at a house party in the summer of 2016 after a high-profile trial in Belfast.