National team partners including Cinch, LV and IG dominate the charts of the most appealing cricket sponsors in the UK according to a survey undertaken by specialist consultancy ONSIDE.
The captivating performances of England’s men’s Test team against New Zealand and India, combined with increased exposure for the women’s national team across all formats have helped propel Cinch to the top of the list in only its second season in the sport. The sponsorship has proved to be particularly appealing to males and over 65’s. Members of this older age group identified Cinch as their most admired cricket sponsor three times more frequently than 18 to 25-year-olds.
The Hundred was launched in 2021 to help attract new audiences to cricket in England and Wales and its format and reach have encouraged new sponsors into the sport including KP Snacks, Robinsons and the Unilever brands Lifebuoy and Sure. As The Hundred gears up for its second season, these partners will be seeking to harness the competition’s reach to drive awareness, affinity and positive commercial outcomes.
A year on from the first edition, the only partner of The Hundred to feature prominently on the list of admired cricket sponsors is Vitality, a brand that is also the title sponsor of domestic Twenty20 tournaments, including the men’s Vitality Blast and Vitality Women’s County T20.
KP Snacks will be hoping that year-round on-pack marketing and front-of-shirt kit branding for all eight men’s and women’s teams pays off for its stable of brands in this second season. The Principal Partner of The Hundred, Cazoo, will also be seeking a boost. It did not feature in the top 20 most appealing cricket sponsors when the ONSIDE survey was undertaken in mid-2022.
England Cricket men’s and women’s on-field success has contributed positively to reception of national team sponsorships, according to ONSIDE’s Managing Director, UK and Middle East, Jon Long (pictured above).
“National team sponsors received significant exposure during the early part of the summer. This helps drive awareness. With both the men’s and women’s teams enjoying on-field success this also seems to have contributed positively to the way these sponsorships have been received, particularly by older consumers,” said ONSIDE Managing Director, UK and Middle East, Jon Long.
“As a one-month competition that first took place almost a year ago, it is logical that The Hundred sponsors should feature less prominently than those brands associated with the national teams. It will be interesting to see whether the second season will have a more enduring impact on the profile of these sponsorships in the UK.”
Other sponsors to receive prominent mentions in the survey included long-term partners of the ICC’s global events such as Nissan, Coca-Cola and Emirates (also a sponsor of Lancashire Cricket) and former partners of the England team, including NatWest and Waitrose. NatWest continues to resonate as a brand associated with cricket amongst older age cohorts.
Castore, which became the England team’s official kit supplier in 2021, was one of three sportswear brands to feature in the top 20 alongside Nike and Adidas. None of the central sponsors of the 2022 Tata IPL featured in the top 50 of this UK list.
There is scope for cricket sponsorships to reach a wider audience. Fewer than 1 in 2 UK adults were able to name a sponsor of cricket they admire. This is lower than both rugby (54%) and football (63%).
This exclusive cricket sponsorship research is part of ONSIDE’s Quarterly Sponsorship Review (QSR) of the UK market.
