Saudi Gazette report
RIYADH — Saudi cricket announced that it has signed an agreement with MBUZZSPORT, the sports media and sponsorship division of Riyadh-based telecom services company MBUZZ Group ( HYPERLINK “http://www.mbuzz.sa/” \t “_blank” www.mbuzz.sa), as its sponsorship partner for the upcoming ICC World Cricket League Division 1 Asia Qualifier.
The qualifying tournament will be played in Chiang Mai, Thailand, from April 22 to May 1, and the winning nation in the tournament will get a berth in World Cricket League Division 5, a pathway to the ICC Cricket World Cup.
The Saudi national cricket team will play warm-up games against Singapore in Malaysia, before traveling to Thailand — for 50-overs matches against China, Bahrain, Kuwait, Bhutan, Thailand and Qatar — in its quest to qualify for the World Cup, and possible future matches against the powerhouses of World Cricket.
The Saudi team will be sponsored throughout the tour by MBUZZSPORT, the sports media, marketing and sponsorship subsidiary of MBUZZ Group. It is the company’s first involvement with Cricket — which has been played in KSA for over 4 decades and is the most popular sport among the expatriate population of the Kingdom, especially those coming from the subcontinent. There are more than 520 cricket teams playing in 9 major cities of Saudi Arabia, with over 7,000 players registered with Saudi Cricket.
MBUZZSPORT was established to provide mid-size international Middle East businesses, like its parent company MBUZZ Group, with the ability to reach widespread global audiences through sport.
Its involvements have largely focused so far on top-tier football — contracts having been signed with top teams in England, as well as a groundbreaking shirt sponsorship deal for Royal Jordanian Airlines in Spain’s La Liga with Madrid club CD Leganés.
Nadeem Nadwi, chief executive of Saudi Cricket said: “This is an exciting development for Saudi Cricket - supporting, as it does, our national team on its pathway up the international cricket ladder. On behalf of Prince Dr. Faisal Bin Muhammad Bin Saud Bin Abdulaziz, patron-in-chief of Saudi Cricket, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the MBUZZ Group management team — Chairman Nawaf Al Shammari and CEO Youssef Abdellaoui — for their support, and we look forward to MBUZZSPORT becoming an important member of the Saudi Cricket family and scene.”
Abdellaoui, chief executive of MBUZZ Group, added: “We have been impressed with the professionalism of Saudi Cricket in promoting the sport in the Kingdom, and with its work towards bringing Saudi youth into the game, in line with the Vision 2030 initiative. As our first excursion outside football, we are delighted to be associated with the world’s second most popular sport and to helping Saudi Arabia secure an ever higher position in World Cricket.”
In the coming weeks, MBUZZ and Saudi Cricket will announce details of further collaborations in supporting cricket in Saudi Arabia at the national level.
Cricket is one of the world’s largest sports, played in over 100 countries across multiple formats. The game has transformed significantly in the last decade — through the addition of the T20 (short-form, 20 overs) format, new rules like free hits on no-balls, or new technology for adjudication and transparency — enhancing player performance, fan experience, and greater participation.
