French lottery Française des Jeux (FDJ) has agreed a deal to become a major partner of women’s cycling event La Course by Le Tour de France.
FDJ struck the three-year partnership, which will run from 2016 to 2018, with Amaury Sport Organisation, the organiser of the event.
Under the agreement, FDJ will launch a campaign to encourage more women to take up sport.
The 2016 La Course will take place on July 24 ahead of the final stage of the showpiece Tour de France. The event will feature 21 teams.
FDJ, which also serves as the title sponsor of men’s UCI WorldTour team FDJ, joins Specialized, Oakley, Dimension Data and Tissot as La Course partners.