Caterpillar UK is ending its sponsorship with Premiership rugby side Leicester Tigers, according to LEICESTER MERCURY. The construction firm announced on Friday that it "would not be renewing its sponsorship deal with the club next year, as part of plans to cut costs." Caterpillar will maintain its sponsorship with the club for the '15-16 season. The company has been the club's main sponsor for the past eight years. Caterpillar's Building Construction Products Division GM Silvana Godelaine said, "We had to make this difficult decision in the light of our plan to reduce our operational costs globally, and we all want to thank Leicester Tigers Rugby Club for their support." Caterpillar announced in September that it "was to cut 10,000 jobs worldwide after seeing a drop in a demand for its construction and mining equipment." Tigers CEO Simon Cohen said that the firm had a three to five-year sponsorship deal with the club that was "due to be renewed next year." Neither the Tigers nor Caterpillar "would be drawn on the value of the sponsorship deal." However, a sponsorship expert estimated the annual value of a season-long Premier League kit sponsorship deal would "tip seven figures" (LEICESTER MERCURY, 10/16).