Cricket sponsorship agreements can often exist as a verbal understanding or a short email exchange, which rarely holds up through one season and falls apart in the second. This guide sets out what every grassroots cricket sponsorship agreement needs in writing, the eight clauses protecting both sides, the deliverables the club owes its sponsor, and the specifics of the cricket season that make a cricket template different from a football or rugby one. However, we are not legal experts so ensure you seek the proper guidance. I am sure one of your members is a lawyer!
Why a written cricket sponsorship agreement matters
A handshake and a season of goodwill work fine until something goes wrong, if the kit arrives late, or the season ends and neither side knows whether the arrangement continues. A written agreement removes this guesswork, clarifying for both parties exactly what the sponsor receives and what the club owes. Neither side is then relying on memory once the person who made the original promise has moved on.
This guide is published as general guidance, not legal advice. If the sponsorship value is significant, ensure to have the agreement reviewed by someone with relevant expertise before signing.
The eight clauses every cricket sponsorship agreement needs
1. Parties and dates
Name the club or its parent charity in full, along with the sponsor's full trading name and Companies House number where one applies. Many grassroots cricket clubs have no separate legal entity, in which case the agreement names the chair or a named committee officer as the responsible party, with a note the role transfers to their successor by written agreement.
2. Sponsorship value and payment terms
State the figure to be paid, what it covers, and when it is due. A full cricket kit sponsorship through Kit Funder costs £992 for an eleven-player squad, covering whites, coloured kit and training wear for the season. Producing things like boundary rope branding and signage will cost more so ensure you have a realistic cost and a healthy margin to support the club.
3. Kit design, signage and approval
The sponsor approves the design showing its logo before production starts, typically within five working days of receiving the mockup. State where the logo sits on whites versus coloured kit, since cricket clubs often run two kit types across a single season. A sponsor assuming both carry the logo the same way is a common source of disappointment later. Ensure signage is approved too.
4. Season and match deliverables
List exactly what the sponsor receives from their sponsorship. These could be a front-of-shirt or front-of-jumper logo placement, a mention in matchday reports, a team photo with the logo on show within four weeks of the season starting, or a minimum number of social media mentions. A deliverable left off the list is one that the club has not promised, whatever was said in conversation beforehand.
5. Sponsorship exclusivity and category
State whether the sponsor holds exclusive rights within its business category, a builders' merchant sponsor not wanting a second builders' merchant on a teammate's training top, for example, and whether this exclusivity extends across the whole club or the sponsored team alone. Clubs running junior, women's and senior sides under one badge should be specific about which sides the exclusivity clause covers.
6. Renewal and right of first refusal
Set a first-refusal window giving the current sponsor the chance to renew before the club approaches anyone else. Cricket's kit order needs to close well before an April season start, so build the renewal decision point into the winter rather than leaving it until spring.
7. Exit terms and non-performance
Cover what happens if either side cannot continue: if the club folds or merges, the sponsor's business closes, a kit order is not produced, or an invoice is left unpaid. Thirty days' written notice, a refund for kit not yet produced, and retention of kit already delivered is the standard approach for a grassroots agreement.
8. Charity donation clause
Many clubs also want to ensure a percentage goes to a local or national charity, so make this clear too.
Cricket-specific considerations
Cricket's season runs roughly April to September and an agreement needs to account for a wet-weather cancellation reducing the number of matches a sponsor's logo appears at without reducing the sponsorship value owed. State fixture cancellations do not affect the agreed price, since the sponsor is backing a season, not a fixed count of matches.
A club running junior sides alongside a senior XI should be explicit about which squads the agreement covers. A single sponsor backing a whole club's kit across several age groups is a different, larger commitment than sponsoring one team, and the agreement should price and describe it as such rather than leaving the scope implied. Also, remember certain industries are not suitable for under-18s, so ensure that is considered.
Women's and girls' cricket sponsorship agreement considerations
A club running a separate women's or girls' section should decide early whether this side sits inside a combined club sponsorship or under its own agreement. Some sponsors specifically want women-only visibility for their own CSR reporting, and a combined agreement risks underselling this if it is not written in as a distinct line.
Women's cricket now carries a different commercial weight than it did even two seasons ago. England hosts the ICC Women's T20 World Cup in 2026, and the ECB's own figures show girls' teams growing from 2,176 to 2,772 and clubs running a girls' section rising from 888 to 1,102 in the year to August 2025, part of the ECB's wider Inspiring Generations strategy for 2025 to 2028. A sponsor backing a women's or girls' side today is buying into a part of the game with real, documented momentum behind it.
This growth sits alongside dedicated funding routes worth mentioning in the same conversation as sponsorship, including the ECB's Building Belonging in Cricket Fund and county board grants prioritising women's and girls' cricket. For the full list, see grants for cricket clubs in the UK.
Kit fit is worth a specific line in the agreement too, as women's cricket kit is not simply a smaller cut of the men's version, and some sponsors want their logo confirmed separately on the women's-specific kit design rather than assuming one approval covers both.
Schoolgirl and junior girls' cricket adds a further layer. Chance to Shine, the ECB's delivery partner for free cricket in state schools, is not a fund a club applies to directly, but a club with links to a partner school running Chance to Shine sessions has a genuine, specific story to tell a sponsor about where girls in the area first pick up a bat, worth including in the pitch even where it sits outside the sponsorship agreement itself.
Sample cricket sponsorship agreement structure
A grassroots cricket sponsorship agreement should run to two or three pages, covering the eight clauses above in plain language. Skip indemnity clauses built for commercial contracts worth £50,000 or more, lengthy force majeure paragraphs, and jurisdiction clauses beyond confirming UK jurisdiction applies. None of this adds protection at grassroots scale, and all of it adds pages a volunteer committee has to read.
The Kit Funder route: agreement handled through the platform
Kit Funder arrangements come with a standard sponsorship agreement built into the platform, agreed during the matching process rather than drafted from scratch by either side. My Club Group handles kit design, production and delivery once terms are confirmed, and the club never needs to pay for legal advice to get a season's sponsorship in writing. Kit Funder matches clubs with sponsors at every scale, from a local independent backing one team to a regional or national brand backing a whole club, with the same agreement template behind each one. Cricket ambassador Chris Cowdrey has backed the platform publicly, giving a first-time sponsor a recognisable name standing behind the model.
Your Kit, Funded
Kit Funder handles the agreement template inside the platform. Register your cricket club free at kitfunder.ai/teams. For the wider picture of how cricket sponsorship works end to end, read the complete UK guide to grassroots cricket sponsorship. If your club has not yet approached a sponsor, start with how to write a sponsorship proposal for a cricket club, and a local business weighing up whether to back a team at all should read how to sponsor a grassroots sports team.
Common questions about cricket sponsorship agreements
Do grassroots cricket clubs need a written sponsorship agreement?
Yes. A verbal arrangement relies on memory once the season ends and the people involved move on, and it gives neither side anything to point to if a dispute comes up. A written agreement, even a short one, protects both the club and the sponsor.
How long should a cricket sponsorship agreement run?
One season is the standard first term, with an option to renew on the same terms and a chance to renegotiate after two seasons. Avoid locking a first-time sponsor into three seasons before either side has seen the arrangement work in practice.
What happens if a cricket sponsor pulls out mid-season?
A standard exit clause gives thirty days' written notice, a refund for any kit not yet produced, and retention of kit already delivered to the club. Cover this in writing before the season starts rather than negotiating it after a sponsor has already decided to leave.
Can a cricket club have separate agreements for men's and women's teams?
Yes, and it is often the better structure where a sponsor wants specific visibility with a women's or girls' side for its own reporting. State clearly in each agreement which squads it covers, so a combined club sponsorship and a women's-specific agreement do not overlap or contradict each other.
Does Kit Funder provide the sponsorship agreement?
Yes. Every Kit Funder arrangement includes a standard sponsorship agreement built into the platform, confirmed during the matching process. Neither the club nor the sponsor needs to draft their own contract or pay for legal advice to get the season's terms in writing.
