TELECOMMUNICATIONS provider Digicel and the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) have signed a new agreement that will, in addition to sponsoring the senior team, also provide backing for the world champion Under-19 and Women’s teams.All three teams created history earlier this year by winning world titles in their respective competitions.
The men’s senior team became the first team to win the World T20 title twice while the women were winning for the very first time. In February, the West Indies Under-19 team won the U-19 world title for the very first time.
The new four-year deal will also see Digicel commit to help in the development of coaching clinics across the Caribbean, to find and nurture the cricket stars of the future.
Digicel will also engage in what has been described as a strong mix of branding and advertising at home games, activations, promotional opportunities and more access to the teams. And, for the first time ever, the Digicel logo will also have a presence on all West Indies team’s jerseys at ICC events.
“As part of the WICB’s plan to expand its commercial business, a key component of this strategy was the renewal of the relationship with our long-term and valued team sponsor. The new partnership meets a number of our strategic commercial goals, and we are delighted to be continuing our long association with Digicel,” said WICB CEO Michael Muirhead.
“Over the past 12 years, Digicel has demonstrated its love of the game of cricket and has helped to bring new excitement to our passionate fans. This new era sees an expanded level of support for all of our teams and a focus on growing the next wave of Caribbean cricket champions in all formats.”
Digicel’s commitment will help the strategic growth of the WICB’s business and provide greater engagement for fans and benefits to Digicel customers. This includes the support of the long form of the game, and the future of Test Cricket, and this will play out with the broadcasting of the Professional Cricket League (PCL) Regional 4-Day Competition set to start later this year.
“Our aim with all of our community and sponsorship initiatives is to support our customers and the things that they love and identify with most – and one of those things is cricket. The game of cricket has a long and fascinating history in the Caribbean uniting the people of the islands and the islands themselves through a shared passion and a competitive thrill,” said John Delves, Chief Commercial Officer at Digicel Group.
“The stunning recent successes of the men’s, women’s and U-19s teams have once again broadened the appeal of the game and excited new audiences.
“We are delighted to be involved now with all of the WICB teams and particularly pleased to be partnering on the coaching clinics which will help to nurture future champions from the Caribbean.”