Sports retail store chain Rebel has opted to extend its title sponsorship of the Women’s Big Bash League following the success of the inaugural season of the Australian Twenty20 cricket competition.
Rebel’s new two-year agreement with the WBBL will cover the 2016-17 and 2017-18 seasons.
Rebel signed on as the title sponsor of the 2015-16 WBBL campaign last November. The competition’s first-ever season proved to be a success, with over 70,000 people attending broadcast matches and an average television audience of 231,000 for games.
Anthony Everard, the head of the Big Bash League for Cricket Australia, said: “Rebel have really embraced the major purpose of the WBBL, to inspire girls to play cricket, and it will be exciting to work with Rebel across the next two seasons as we look to grow the competition and women's cricket, and to be a leader in women's sport in Australia.”
The 2016-17 WBBL season gets underway on December 10.
In other news, the New South Wales Breakers representative team has become the first fully professional outfit in Australian domestic women’s sport following a sponsorship agreement with Sydney-based infrastructure company Lendlease.
The team, which plays in the Women’s National Cricket League, will officially be titled the Lendlease Breakers as part of the deal. The partnership ensures that Breakers players will now earn at least the minimum wage of A$35,000 (€23,800/$26,600), with leading international players to make A$100,000 or more.
Cricket NSW chief executive Andrew Jones said: “Every member of the Lendlease Breakers squad now has the opportunity to pursue a professional sporting career. I am confident that every state in Australia will now follow the lead of Cricket NSW by giving their female cricketers the opportunity to earn a living wage.”