SOS IRB Kit Aid

August 2006: Western Union money transfer has donated 1000 brand new rugby balls in a joint initiative with SOS IRB Kit Aid, a unique charity which collects used rugby kits and equipment from schools in England and distributes them to all corners of Eastern Europe, including Poland. The distribution of used kits and the donation of the Western Union branded rugby balls aims to raise the profile of rugby in Poland, where the sport is becoming increasingly popular.

Henk Elzenga, Managing Director FEXCO MT, Western Union’s UK representative, who celebrated the joint initiative with John Broadfoot, Chairman of SOS IRB Kit Aid, said, “Every child should have the opportunity to take part in a sports activity and our association with such a unique organisation will allow children from less well off emerging rugby nations to share in the passion of the rugby game. We hope that this first gesture in donating 1000 rugby balls will make a real difference to young people across Eastern Europe.”

The first stop for the distribution of the donated rugby kits and balls in Poland will be in Poznan, where local towns including Krakow will be participating in an Under 11s, Under 13s, and Under 15s Regional Junior Rugby tournament, organized by the Polish Rugby Federation.

John Broadfoot, said, "SOS IRB Kit Aid is delighted to welcome on board Western Union as an associate sponsor. I would like to thank Henk Elzenga for Western Union’s generosity in buying rugby balls and presenting it to SOS IRB Kit Aid. Thanks to Western Union’s involvement, hundreds of boys and girls in Poland will now be able to play rugby for the first time.”

Western Union provides a fast, reliable and convenient way for loved ones to send money across Eastern Europe. In Poland more than 2200 agent locations offer the Western Union Money Transfer service though out more than X cities.


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EDITORS NOTES

Background

SOS IRB Kit Aid is a charity founded by a rugby mad dad (John Broadfoot), whose son witnessed the plight of Romanian youngsters during a school rugby tour in Romania. The sight of a smiling Romanian eight year old boy running with the ball under one arm whilst he used the other to hold up his shorts made him want to do something about it.

From the first successful pilot when he collected kit from just ten schools, John was able to persuade the International Rugby Board to endorse and fund its expansion to 200+ UK schools. In 2007, it is hoped the programme will be rolled out across the UK to 1000+ schools (and eventually 2000+). John’s short term aspirations are to quadruple the number of youngsters playing rugby in Poland within the next two to three years by introducing rugby as a core sport in schools in Poland. He urges all participating schools/clubs to organise a collection day once a year and to inform SOS when the kit is ready for collection.


About Western Union and First Data
First Data Corp. (NYSE: FDC) is a leading provider of electronic commerce and payment solutions for businesses and consumers worldwide. Serving 4.6 million merchant locations, 1,500 financial institutions and millions of consumers, First Data powers the global economy by making it easy, fast and secure for people and businesses around the world to buy goods and services using virtually any form of payment. The company's portfolio of services and solutions includes credit, debit, private-label, gift and other prepaid card issuing and merchant transaction processing services; money transfer services; money orders; fraud protection and authentication solutions; check guarantee and verification services through TeleCheck; as well as Internet commerce and mobile solutions. Western Union, together with Orlandi Valuta and Vigo, make up one of the world's largest money transfer networks with more than 271,000 Agent locations in more than 200 countries and territories. The company's STAR Network offers PIN-secured debit acceptance at 1.9 million ATM and retail locations. For more information, visit www.firstdata.com.

About SOS IRB KIT AID – see www.sosirbkitaid.org

About FEXCO Money Transfer Ltd
FEXCO Money Transfer Ltd is Western Union’s UK representative. Details of all Western Union locations in the UK, and how to transfer money using your debit or credit card, can be found by phoning 0800 833 833 (24 hrs), or logging onto www.ukmoneytransfer.com

For further information please contact:
- John Broadfoot Tel: 07968 147 022
- Gee Sahota, Tel: 020 8741 3639 / Email: gsahota@fexco.com