Bristol-based specialist insurance broker Brightside has struck a five-year partnership with Gloucestershire County Cricket Club under which the County Ground in Bristol will be renamed as the Brightside Ground.
The deal – the first official naming rights deal in the club’s 146-year history – also includes shirt sponsorship for the Gloucestershire’s T20 kit, extensive branding and signage throughout the ground and season-long hospitality and staff event opportunities.
Gloucestershire described the agreement as another significant partnership for the club and reflected the ambition of both parties with their local roots and emphasis on community work playing a significant part in the appeal of the partnership. Financial details of the deal have not been disclosed.
Brightside Group, based at the former M4 services at Aust, is among the UK’s top 20 insurance brokers. It operates its own brands such as eCar, eBike and Prosport, a specialist insurer for sports people, as well as ‘white label’ insurance services for retailers such as Asda. It also has offices in Southampton, Torquay and Cardiff.
Gloucestershire County Cricket Club chief executive Will Brown said: “The partnership with the Brightside Group represents an historic moment for Gloucestershire Cricket.
“To be able to enter into such a significant relationship with a high-profile local firm who have such strong foundations in the local communities around Bristol is fantastic. The commitment they have already shown to the club, players and supporters gives us great hope for the future and all that we can achieve together.”
Brightside chairman, Mark Cliff, said that the sponsorship deal signalled the company’s “strong and vital relationship with the local community and the importance we attach to being a broker with national reach but with our roots in Bristol. Bristol has a thriving financial services sector, including insurance, and we want to play a leadership role.”
He added: “This partnership gives us a tremendous platform to continue to raise the profile of our brand, as we aim to become one of the top 10 UK brokers, and we look forward to an exciting, long-term partnership with Gloucestershire County Cricket Club, an up and coming club on the domestic cricket scene and a popular international venue.”
The first-class county cricket club was established in 1870, with WG Grace as a founding member.
Its ground, in Bishopston, has recently undergone an extensive redevelopment programme to secure international cricket. The work has also included six permanent floodlights which will be in operation for the start of the 2016 season.
The County Ground has had a number of names since it opened in 1889 as the Ashley Down Ground, including the Fry’s Ground while owned by the confectionery firm, the Phoenix County Ground and The Royal & Sun Alliance County Ground while owned by the insurance group of the same name. It later reverted back to the County Ground.
It has become an established one-day internationals venue and will host Sri Lanka this year, the West Indies next year, India in 2018 and Pakistan in 2019. Four matches will be played at the ground for the 2019 Cricket World Cup.
Pictured: Gloucestershire CCC players at the newly named Brightside Ground with club CEO Will Brown, right and Brightside chairman Mark Cliff. Photo by Martin Bennett
