By Aijaz Ahmed Khan

JEDDAH — Yusuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo Group will sponsor Kanoo Premier League, organized by Jeddah Cricket Association (JCA), for the 24th year following a sponsorship deal was inked between Kanoo and JCA.

The sponsorship check was presented by Sultan Al Yazeedi, marketing & public relation manager of Kanoo Western Province, to JCA Executive Patron Dr. Faiz Al Abideen at Kanoo office here. JCA’s Vice President Hamid Afandi and Syed Ashfaq Hussain were present.

Kanoo’s sponsorship is part of its Corporate Social Responsibility to support sports in general and JCA cricket activities in particular. Kanoo cricket team was also part of JCA Leagues till 2013 and has been the recipient of over 50 trophies in the past 25 years.

Yusuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo Group, a 126 years old business conglomerate, is one of the largest independent family-owned business having diversified interest in shipping, travel & tourism, machinery, power generation and energy services, oil and gas, logistics and freight forwarding, specialty chemicals and retail and commercial activities with its Head office in Bahrain and business spread over UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Oman and Qatar.

Dr. Faiz thanked Sultan and Kanoo management and Khalid Kanoo and Ahmed Fawzi Kanoo, in particular, for their continuous support to JCA activities. JCA officials gave a brief presentation of its cricketing activities during 2016-17 and coming up in 2017-18 including SPL T20, Saudi Cup.

Sultan thanked JCA for giving Kanoo an opportunity to sponsor the Premier League and assured them of the management’s support in future which is evident from Khalid Kanoo’s keenness in JCA activities. He promised JCA officials that he would try to visit JCA Cricket Complex for the final of Kanoo Premier League. JCA expressed hope that Kanoo will also look into the possibility of sponsoring a team in the near future.

Kanoo Premier League matches will be played over a period of 3 months, with 11 teams competing each other on a league-cum-knock-out basis to decide the winner and runner-up of the prestigious Kanoo Cup