Vodafone extends England sponsorship

English cricket has received a major boost on the eve of the Ashes campaign, after Vodafone, the principal sponsors of the national team, agreed a four-year extension to their current deal.

The new commercial partnership with the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) will continue through to the end of the 2009 Ashes series, and will mean that the company has been associated with English since the tour of West Indies in 1997-98.

The new deal provides Vodafone, the telecommunications giant, with a full package of sponsorship rights. They will have branding on all playing and training kit, extensive access to the England players and exclusive 3G mobile content, which will include video highlights of all international matches, starting with the first Test at Lord's on July 21.

The deal includes sponsorship of the England A team, the England women's team and the ECB National Cricket Academy. "This four-year agreement demonstrates Vodafone's ongoing commitment to cricket," said David Collier, chief executive of the ECB, "and provides the ECB with valuable support in our longer-term objective of delivering continuing success at the national level."

Peter Bamford, Vodafone Group's chief marketing officer, said: "The inclusion of the 3G cricket rights in this deal further expands the parameters of our partnership and ensures that cricket fans across the country will be able to catch the action on the field wherever they are."