Korean automotive company Kia has been named the title sponsor of the Women’s Cricket Super League, a new six-team competition formed by the England and Wales Cricket Board.
Kia has agreed a two-year deal with the ECB for the 2016 and 2017 editions of the competition, which will now officially be known as the Kia Super League.
Under the agreement, Kia will be granted a range of sponsorship and marketing rights to the league. It will also receive in-ground activation at all Super League group matches and on finals day.
Kia has an existing relationship with the ECB and has served as an official partner of the England women’s team since 2014.
“Being able to support the game at a domestic level through the Kia Super League helps to ensure the future of the women’s game in this country and provide opportunities for up and coming players,” Paul Philpott, president and chief executive of Kia Motors UK, said.
The first-ever Kia Super League season gets underway on July 30 when the Yorkshire Diamonds take on Loughborough Lightning at Headingley Cricket Ground in Leeds. Finals day will take place on August 21 at the Essex County Ground in Chelmsford.
The inaugural season of the competition will run in the Twenty20 format, with future editions set to feature both Twenty20 and 50-over formats.