Shorts: Charlton Athletic, Tennis, Soccer Aid
League One football club Charlton Athletic and British sportswear brand Castore have announced a new multi-year partnership. The partnership will see Castore become the club’s official kit and retail partner from the 2022/23 season.
The deal becomes one of the most valuable commercial partnerships in Charlton’s recent history and follows the news that RSK and the University of Greenwich will be shirt sponsors from the 2022/23 season. As part of the partnership, Castore will take over the club’s retail operations, which will include a revamp of the club shop at The Valley, set to re-open on July 1st, as well as the club’s online shop. Castore will provide kit for all Charlton teams and for Charlton Athletic Community Trust.
Charlton’s owner and CEO, Thomas Sandgaard, said, “We are proud to announce our partnership with Castore. Like us, they are a company with big ambitions and they want to be a part of our growth. They have been working with us on exciting new plans to revamp our club shop and will be creating new customised kits for us to play in next season. I am excited to have partnered with Castore, a high-quality shirt and merchandise partner as we build for the future at Charlton.”
Vodafone has announced new partnerships with British stars Jack Draper, Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid as its new tennis ambassadors. Alfie, Gordon and Jack will work with Vodafone to inspire the next generation of players and help grow grassroots tennis in the UK. Vodafone will work closely with Alfie and Gordon to identify how tennis can be made more accessible to players of mixed ability across the UK and tackle common barriers within the sport.
All three players will also be working with Vodafone as part of its broader commitment to support all levels of British tennis and to encourage people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities to pick up a racket. This will include the relaunched and expanded individual mass participation competition Play Your Way to Wimbledon, powered by Vodafone, which next year will include disability categories for the first time. Formerly known as the Road to Wimbledon, Play Your Way to Wimbledon is delivered in partnership by the LTA, The All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club and Vodafone, with over 15,000 playing opportunities this year across the regional qualifiers and national finals, which will take place on Wimbledon’s Aorangi Courts.
Super League Triathlon (SLT) will offer fans a unique opportunity to own a stake in one of its race team franchises as it develops the sport’s first professional league. SLT, which kicks off in London, is a global swim-bike-run series, pitching the best athletes in the world against each other over fast, short and exciting race formats. The expanded 2022 Championship Series will take place in September and October and will see a first visit to France as well as a dramatic Grand Finale to be revealed soon as part of a global calendar of racing.
In a unique move, fans who sign up to become team owners will help decide which athletes get drafted into the team, giving the chance to play fantasy triathlon in real life and have a huge impact on who wins the 2022 Championship Series. They will also get to input on a range of other team issues from kit design through to major tactical decisions.
The world’s biggest charity football match, Soccer Aid for UNICEF, has announced that sugar free protein sports drink WOW Hydrate will be an official partner for the 2022 game. The match will take place on Sunday 12th June at the London Stadium, broadcasted live on ITV and STV.
WOW Hydrate has upgraded its sponsorship from supporting the event, to becoming an official partner. In addition to keeping everyone hydrated throughout training week and match day, this year’s partnership will include unique behind the scenes access with an array of Soccer Aid for UNICEF talent.
Blueprint Sports & Entertainment has revealed that Scudetto Champion and England centre back, Fikayo Tomori has joined the Blueprint management roster. Blueprint will work alongside partners Sports Invest to exclusively manage Fikayo’s commercial, press and social media interests.
