Man City named Virgin Trains "the official travel partner" for its London-based event series, City in the City. The sponsorship will see the train operating company sponsor the club’s behind-the-scenes events program "which caters to fans and corporate guests in an attempt to promote the brand in London." As part of the deal, Virgin will offer Man City fan club members travel discounts along its west coast network, including a 25% discount "on advance off-peak fares" (THE DRUM, 12/3). ... Starting with its game Saturday against Barcelona, La Liga side Valencia will display the beIN Sports logo on the first team squad's shirts. The beIN Sports logo will appear on the back of the club shirts for the remainder of its La Liga and Copa del Rey matches this season (Valencia). ... Sports manufacturer Spartan "hatched an ambitious plan to topple iconic homegrown brand Kookaburra in the next two years as the ball supplier used by Cricket Australia for Tests" played in Australia. The company, better known for its bat production, said that it is in the "testing mode" for a new red ball which it claims is "more durable, can be produced cheaper and offer more assistance to the bowlers than Kookaburra's version" (SYDNEY MORNING HERALD, 12/3). ... Liverpool announced it "signed a new corporate social responsibility partner" -- NTUC Income's NTUC Income OrangeAid. The club "will help to drive awareness of NTUC Income OrangeAid's objectives and initiatives as part of the two-year deal" (CHANNEL NEWS ASIA, 12/2). ... Brasileiro side Corinthians announced "a new shirt sponsorship deal with Klar." The club signed a two-year agreement that will see the cleaning company's logo "displayed on the sleeves" of its playing shirts. Financial terms of the deal "have not been released" (SOCCEREX, 12/3). ... Bookmaker Unibet "is looking for an agency." The Swedish-owned company, which offers sports betting, poker and casino games, "is holding a pitch to find a shop to handle advertising across Europe" (BRAND REPUBLIC, 12/3). ... Super League club Wigan Warriors unveiled online bookmaker 188BET as the club's new official main sponsor. The sponsorship will see the 188BET logo displayed on the front of Wigan's new '16 match and replica shirts (Wigan Warriors). ... Korean Air Lines Co. "has become a corporate sponsor for the 2018 Olympic Winter Games in PyeongChang, South Korea." Korean Air will "provide passenger services for the Olympic organizers and national team athletes, and also cargo flights to aid the games' operations" (YONHAP, 12/3). ... Big Bash League side Sydney Thunder announced HomeWorld as the club's major sponsor in a two-year partnership. HomeWorld is the country's leading display home organization, developing and managing villages throughout New South Wales (Sydney Thunder). ... Basketball Australia announced Vicinity Centres as the new principal partner of "Aussie Hoops" -- the official junior development program of BA -- in a three-year sponsorship (Basketball Australia). ... The South African Rugby Union signed a new five-year sponsorship deal with Tsogo Sun, Southern African gaming, hotel and entertainment group, which will extend its association with SARU and the Springboks beyond 20 years. Tsogo Sun first became involved in sponsoring South African rugby during the 1995 Rugby World Cup, and has now extended the association until '20 (SARU).
