Badminton: Li-Ning continues multi-million dollar deal with Singapore badminton

From left: CEO of SBA Ronnie Lim, President of SBA Lee Yi Shyan, Managing Director of Sunlight Sports Kapoor, and Sec-Gen of SBA Michael Foo. The Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) renewed its partnership with leading China sports brand
From left: CEO of SBA Ronnie Lim, President of SBA Lee Yi Shyan, Managing Director of Sunlight Sports Kapoor, and Sec-Gen of SBA Michael Foo. The Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) renewed its partnership with leading China sports brand Li-Ning. -- PHOTO: SUNLIGHT SPORTS

THE Singapore Badminton Association (SBA) yesterday renewed its partnership with leading China sports brand Li-Ning.

The four-year deal, worth $4.5 million, will see members of the Singapore national badminton teams wear and use Li-Ning apparel and equipment. Part of the sponsorship will also go towards monthly incentives for national players, who can also receive one-off cash incentives for medal achievements at international tournaments.

Although the brand will not return as title sponsor for the Singapore Open, which it held from 2010 to 2013, it will partially sponsor other events such as the national championships and the Singapore International Series.

The SBA is also hoping to tap on the Li-Ning connections - the brand also sponsors China's national badminton team - to arrange collaborations such as overseas training stints for the Republic's players.

"We are always looking at how to create opportunities for our players to play with other equivalent or leading teams, especially before major tournaments. This is something we can explore," said SBA president and Senior Minister of State for National Development and Trade and Industry Lee Yi Shyan.

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