Personal care brand Gillette has entered into a partnership with Cricket Australia, through which it will take on naming rights to the men’s team’s one-day international and Twenty20 series.
The two-year agreement begins with the 2017-18 season and also names Gillette as the official men’s grooming partner of Cricket Australia.
Cricket Australia said the decision to appoint a naming rights sponsor across both short-form series is in line with the restructuring of its commercial partnership model.
“Gillette is a well-known brand, with close associations to leading sports around the world and we are looking forward to working with them over the course of the next two years to help them to achieve their objectives and to further promote our international short format series,” Cricket Australia chief executive James Sutherland said.
“This announcement also demonstrates Cricket Australia’s commitment to driving investment in the game to ensure the sport’s long-term health and reinforces the value of sponsorship in cricket.”
Magesvaran Suranjan, president of P&G, Gillette’s parent company, in the Asia Pacific region, added: “This significant sponsorship announcement sees Gillette continue to pay homage to its rich sport heritage. Globally, the brand has aligned with some of the most prominent and respected athletes and sports leagues in the world.
“Cricket is part of the brand’s DNA, with Gillette having been the first brand globally to sponsor limited overs cricket with the Gillette Cup in the UK in 1964, a forerunner to the one-day international and T20 formats we see today.”
Previous T20 international partner, KFC, aligned its support to the Big Bash League as previously announced last week. The fast food restaurant chain renewed its title sponsorship of the BBL having held naming rights to the competition since the inaugural 2011-12 season. The agreement will run for four years.