Shorts: LTA, The FA, Sarah Kendall
The LTA has inked a new three-year agreement with Haier, which places them as an Official Partner of British tennis.
The agreement focuses on supporting participation in tennis and padel across the UK and follows recent efforts by the LTA to grow accessibility and engagement in the sport nationwide.
Haier has already worked across multiple tennis properties globally, including with the ATP, French Tennis Federation and Tennis Australia.
In the UK, the brand has been involved with promotional activity through the LTA since 2023, including a global campaign titled Play with the Number Ones, which has featured TV spots, digital advertising and out-of-home placements.
As part of the extended deal, Haier and the LTA have planned to localise the campaign for the UK market in 2025, continuing efforts to increase grassroots interest and visibility of tennis through a combination of fan-facing initiatives and marketing activity.
Chris Pollard, LTA Managing Director of Commercial and Operations said, “Haier is synonymous with innovation and excellence, fully committed to working with the LTA in making tennis more accessible, opening up our sport to make it more welcoming and enjoyable for more people across Great Britain.”
The FA has named The National Lottery as the partner for its Big Football Day initiative, which will run throughout UEFA Women’s EURO 2025.
The partnership aims to bring the grassroots football community together and increase opportunities for women and girls to participate in football during the tournament.
Big Football Day was originally launched for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup and will return with investment support from The National Lottery.
Grassroots clubs across England will host events, including taster sessions and watch parties for England games, to encourage community involvement and inspire more women and girls to engage with football.
The initiative seeks to build on the growth seen in girls’ football since UEFA Women’s EURO 2022, which saw the number of girls playing football more than double, and forms part of The FA’s ‘Made for this Game’ campaign, promoting equal opportunities in the sport.
The partnership extends The National Lottery’s existing support for women’s and girls’ football, which has seen over £65m committed in the last decade, including funding for The FA’s UEFA EURO Legacy Programme after the 2022 tournament.
Sue Day, Director of Women’s Football at The FA, said, “Big Football Day powered by The National Lottery will be at the heart of The FA’s plans to capture the EURO 2025 spirit at home and encourage women and girls of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to give football a go.
“Running throughout what we hope will be another special summer, this is a key opportunity for us to show football is a sport where all women and girls belong.”
The Football Association has appointed Sarah Kendall as its new head of commercial partnerships.
Kendall will succeed Stephen Hutchison, who also previously worked at Fuse, and will report to the FA’s commercial director, James Gray.
Kendall has joined the governing body at a time when the FA has continued to grow its commercial programme across both the men’s and women’s games, following partnerships in recent years with brands including Nike, EE, and Barclays.
Her experience in agency leadership and brand activation is expected to support the FA’s continued focus on long-term partnership value and audience growth ahead of major events including UEFA Euro 2028, which the UK and Ireland are set to co-host.
Ascot Racecourse has appointed Jonathan Gregory as its new Chief Commercial Officer.
Gregory joins Ascot from The Goodwood Group, where he has served as Chief Commercial Officer since October 2024.
He previously held senior commercial roles at Leicester City and Fulham, as well as at venues including Wembley Stadium and Bahrain International Circuit.
His arrival comes as Ascot Racecourse continues to expand its commercial activity in the build-up to Royal Ascot in June 2025. The venue has recently focused on increasing brand partnerships and international hospitality offerings in response to growing global interest in major UK racing events.
Jonathan Gregory said, “I’m thrilled to join Ascot Racecourse, one of the most iconic sporting venues in the world with such a prestigious history dating back over 300 years.
“Ascot has a truly unique blend of heritage and innovation, so I’m excited to bring my experience and knowledge to this role as we look to expand the world-class offering that Ascot brings both on and off the track.”
The Boat Race 2025 achieved a peak UK TV audience of 2.82m, outperforming The Masters and the F1 Grand Prix viewership.
The Women’s Boat Race hit a peak of 2.18 million viewers, a 14% year-on-year rise, making it the UK’s most-watched women’s sporting event of 2025 so far.
Around 200,000 spectators lined the course, contributing an estimated £13.3m-£15m to the local economy.
The 2026 race date is set for 4th April.
Siobhan Cassidy, Chair of The Boat Race Company, said, “The Boat Race represents the best of British – two world-leading universities competing in one of the oldest major sporting events.
“Each year we tell the stories of the highs and lows of the student athletes competing in this amateur race – epitomising the athletic challenge, personal sacrifice and teamwork required to secure a seat in the boat.”
Attivo has become the principal partner of Worcestershire County Cricket Club and secured front-of-shirt rights across the club’s men’s and women’s limited-overs teams for the 2025 season.
The deal includes a front-of-shirt sponsorship for the Worcestershire Rapids men’s and women’s teams competing in the 2025 Vitality Blast and Metro Bank One Day Cup.
Attivo has previously held official partner status with the club and has now expanded its involvement to cover fan engagement, hospitality access, and wider brand integration across the club’s platforms.
The agreement reflects an ongoing trend in English county cricket, where commercial partnerships have increasingly included both men’s and women’s team rights, as part of efforts to grow visibility and investment across both sides of the game.
Ashley Giles, the club’s CEO, said, “Their contribution last year as the first ever women’s shirt sponsorship for Worcestershire was groundbreaking, and we are delighted to see the women’s game go from strength to strength.
“It’s fantastic to build on that this year, and to enhance the Attivo partnership further.”
Red Bull has inked partnership with creative agency People to launch ‘The Wall’ at its recent BMX event.
People handled the creative, production, operations, and the build, including the platform situated beside the 9m ramp.
The event featured Sebastian ‘Bas’ Keep and saw 11 world-first tricks landed.
This collaboration follows People’s work on the Red Bull Soapbox event.
Rory O’Donovan, Partner at People, said, “Red Bull produces some of the world’s most distinctive and dramatic sports events, providing fans with unforgettable experiences.
“At People, we always want to push the boundaries of what a space can do – so it’s been a privilege working with a pioneering team at Red Bull, to create the right environment for such an exciting sporting spectacle.”
