Seven debuts refreshed sponsorship lineup for 2023-24 summer of cricket
The Seven Network has revealed the sponsorship lineup for its 2023-24 ‘summer of cricket’, welcoming new and returning partners across its Big Bash League (BBL) and Test Cricket coverage.
Woolworths and KFC both return as key brand partners across the cricket coverage after respectively extending their partnerships for a further two years at the end of 2022.
Toyota is also continuing to make good of its overarching partnership, launching its latest cricket campaign last week, alongside Harvey Norman, which notably flagged the end of its three year partnership with Rugby Australia on Thursday.
The Test series will see Commonwealth Bank, Bunnings, NRMA Insurance, Lion and Canadian Club all return, joined by first-time Seven cricket sponsors Chemist Warehouse and Menulog.
Sponsors for the BBL will include Bundaberg Brewed Drinks, Anaconda, Youi and Weber.
Over the course of the season, coverage will also include major integrated packages from Cancer Council. Mitsubishi Electric, BKT and Raiz Invest.
“The extraordinary take up of returning and new brands in 2023-24 is testament to the incredible appeal of cricket on Seven and its ability to create mass cultural moments and strong results for our partners,” said Seven West Media chief revenue officer, Kurt Burnette.
“Each member of our cricket family of brands brings their messages and storytelling in their own unique way, using creative and integration across broadcast, digital and social activations to connect with Seven’s dominant and super-engaged cricket audience.
“Research consistently and categorically proves that the most powerful marketing weapon over summer is the ads between overs in cricket. With Seven as the only place ads will run during play, it makes Seven’s cricket the stand-out solution for brands to get fast, effective reach and attention,” he said.
“Cricket is synonymous with summer in Australia, and we are delighted to work with Cricket Australia and our partners and sponsors to bring it to all Australians, live and free.”
The cricket season kicked off last month with the women’s T20 international series, a three-match ODI series and the start of the WBBL. The women’s game is hoping to make the most of the momentum for women’s sport built over the FIFA Women’s World Cup over winter, partnering with creative firm Apparent to revamp the WBBL brand in a new campaign.
The season is set to gear up shortly with the launch of the men’s BBL game on 7 December, running through to the 24 of January. Other highlights will include the Australian men’s Test Series against Pakistan (14 December to 7 January) and the West Indies (17 January to 29 January), as well as the Australia versus South Africa Women’s International Series (27 January to 18 February).
Seven solidified its commitment to cricket at the beginning of the year, entering a $1.51 billion deal with Foxtel Group that will see its Seven and 7plus channels hold onto the broadcast rights Australian International Men’s and Women’s matches as well as the WBBL and BBL until the 2030-31 season.
The new agreement came after Seven’s launched legal proceedings in an attempt to abandon its prior six year deal due to contract breaches by Cricket Australia, opening up speculation that Paramount would be put in a bid to land the rights for Network 10.
However, negotiations saw Seven drop its case, instead opting to pay $65 million a year for the new rights deal, down from the $75 million it had been paying annually since 2018.
Of the upcoming season, Seven West Media National sport sales director, Rob Maclean, said: “Cricket on Seven gives brands the most powerful place to activate over summer, driven by content that draws together millions of Australians, unbeatable and consistent national weekly reach – from the first match to the last – and deep brand integration opportunities that bring our partners and sponsors’ stories to life in a highly engaging and effective way.
“This summer, our integration of brands will lift to a new level thanks to our technology partners Quidich, which provides state-of-the-art drone technology coupled with cutting-edge augmented reality capabilities, and Komo Technologies, which will help deliver second-screen real-time engagement, enhancing the customer experience and fan interactivity across the summer.
“Australia loves cricket and this summer will be hot,” he said.
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