The Badminton World Federation (BWF) and its Principal Global Partner HSBC today announce a four-year renewal of their commercial relationship starting January 2023.
HSBC will remain Principal Global Partner and Global Banking Partner of the BWF and Title Sponsor of the BWF World Tour and World Tour Finals until the end of 2026 as the sport embarks on its next World Tour hosting cycle.
BWF President Poul-Erik Høyer thanked HSBC for their support over the past five years, including during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“HSBC’s continued commitment to the delivery of the HSBC BWF World Tour and global promotion of badminton through its Global Development Partner role has been instrumental in helping BWF deliver badminton activities throughout the world.” Høyer said.
“This loyalty was particularly invaluable through the COVID-19 period where we were delighted to extend our previous four-year deal by an additional year to give us strength and stability in an otherwise difficult situation.
“HSBC has invested heavily in badminton since 2018 and we look back fondly over that period. From the first HSBC BWF World Tour Finals in Guangzhou in 2018, to the launch of AirBadminton in 2019, also in Guangzhou, and spectacular season-ending events in Bangkok and Bali in 2021, despite those editions being held under closed-circuit environments.
“We trust the next four years will bear even greater fruits as we enter the new cycle of the HSBC BWF World Tour and double down on our commitment to the AirBadminton project with the sport set to debut at the ANOC World Beach Games.”
The 31-event new HSBC BWF World Tour calendar, which includes the year-end HSBC BWF World Tour Finals, will see more Super 1000, Super 750, and Super 500 tournaments, bringing greater prize money opportunities for players.
BWF Secretary General Thomas Lund added: “Badminton is one of the fastest-growing sports in the world with all-time high participation and fan numbers. More tournaments give us a fantastic opportunity to enhance the sport’s reach around the world, not only in established territories, but into new ones as well.
“It also allows for more players to enter our elite circuit and gain valuable experience, and to strengthen our commercial position for the next four years, and it’s fantastic we have HSBC along for this ride once again.”
Jonathan Castleman, HSBC’s Group Head of Brand and Brand Partnerships commented: “We are really pleased to be extending our partnership with the BWF across the HSBC BWF World Tour and HSBC BWF World Tour Finals. More people than ever are playing and engaging with the sport and with almost half of the fans being under 35 and university educated, it’s a perfect future-focused partnership for us.
“We share a joint ambition to continue to grow the game at all levels by inspiring future generations and by making the sport more accessible through new formats such as AirBadminton. We are passionate about continuing to expand its reach with a community focus, and together with the BWF have been instrumental in helping more people than ever before to pick up a racket.
“With restrictions lifting around the world, we can’t wait to resume live engagement with the fans, our customers, colleagues and communities we serve.”
HSBC also retains its designation as Premier Sponsor of the BWF Major Events, as well as Global Development Partner.
Both BWF and HSBC celebrated this announcement with a spectacular conclusion to the 2022 season at the HSBC BWF World Tour Finals in Bangkok, Thailand on 11 December 2022.
This agreement was brokered by BWF’s long-term commercial partner, Infront Sports & Media.
(Source News: BWF News)
