Summary
Ulster Rugby is one of Ireland’s four professional provincial rugby teams, competing in both the United Rugby Championship and the European Champions Cup.
With players, coaches and staff travelling extensively throughout the UK, Europe and South Africa during the rugby season, reliable mobile communications are essential to maintaining operations on and off the field.
To support its demanding travel schedule, Ulster Rugby required a mobile solution that could deliver reliable connectivity internationally while providing greater control over roaming costs.
The Challenge
Professional sport demands constant communication between players, coaching staff, management and support teams.
With regular international travel throughout the season, Ulster Rugby faced challenges around network coverage, roaming costs and managing mobile services for users operating across multiple countries.
Many players and staff had previously experienced inconsistent network performance while travelling, alongside unexpected roaming charges in high-cost destinations such as South Africa.
The organisation needed a mobile solution that would:
- Deliver reliable network coverage across multiple countries
- Reduce the risk of high roaming charges
- Provide greater visibility and control over mobile spending
- Simplify account management
- Offer responsive support when needed
The Barclay Solution
Barclay Communications worked closely with Ulster Rugby to design a bespoke mobile solution built around its exclusive Barclay Bounce tariff.
Unlike traditional mobile contracts, Barclay Bounce provides access to all four major UK mobile networks under a single contract and unified bill, allowing users to benefit from the strongest available signal wherever they are.
To support the team’s international schedule, Barclay Communications also created a tailored roaming package specifically designed around Ulster Rugby’s travel requirements, particularly for destinations where roaming charges can quickly escalate.
The solution included:
- Access to all four major UK networks
- Up to 99.9% network coverage
- A bespoke international roaming package
- Unified billing and simplified reporting
- Dedicated account management
- Ongoing support and aftercare
This flexible approach ensured players and staff could remain connected wherever matches, training camps or business commitments took them.
Business Outcomes
Since implementing Barclay Bounce, Ulster Rugby has benefited from improved connectivity, greater flexibility and enhanced control over mobile costs.
The tailored roaming solution has helped protect the organisation from excessive charges when travelling internationally, while multi-network access ensures users have dependable coverage both at home and abroad.
Key benefits include:
- Improved mobile coverage through multi-network access
- Reduced exposure to costly international roaming charges
- Greater flexibility for users travelling across multiple countries
- Simplified billing and reporting
- Dedicated account management and ongoing support
- A mobile solution tailored specifically to the demands of professional sport
The result is a communications solution that enables Ulster Rugby to focus on performance while maintaining seamless connectivity throughout a demanding international schedule.
Customer Testimonial
“The competitive pricing and bespoke nature of Barclay Communications’ offering have been game-changers for us. It allows us to avoid hefty roaming charges when travelling to places like South Africa, which is vital for our operations.
What stood out to us was the outstanding customer experience, from aftercare to online reporting and a dedicated account manager. The support we’ve received from day one has been exceptional.”
David Edwards
Ulster Rugby