The Cricketer National Village Cup ,

About the event

Since 1972, The Cricketer administered Davidstow Village Cup has been inextricably linked with the English summer. Each year around 300 clubs from villages across the British Isles battle for the chance to play in the final at Lord’s, the Home of Cricket.

No other sport offers this opportunity to the grassroots level of their game where even the smallest village team can ‘live the dream’ and tread the same hallowed turf as England skipper Alastair Cook and co.

History 
At a meeting in the committee room at Lord’s, chairman of the National Cricket Association Aidan Crawley looked out of the window and remarked that he had always wanted to see village cricketers play on the hallowed turf.

Ben and Belinda Brocklehurst formed a plan of campaign with The Cricketer. They agreed what constituted a village, adding that it should be a ‘rural community surrounded on all sides by open countryside.’ The competition was launched via magazine promotion and more than two thousand village clubs were also written to. By the end of the 1971 cricket season, 785 clubs had been divided into 32 regional groups, whose local knock-out competitions would provide the starting point of the inter-group stages and thereafter the national rounds.

Commitment to the grassroots 
The Cricketer recognises the importance of grassroots cricket and showcases those communities involved in getting village teams onto the park each week. Through the Davistow Village Cup we aim to raise awareness of the rural game and to provide the opportunity for clubs to compete against new teams and make new friends.

Goals for the future 
The Cricketer’s aspiration for the Davidstow Village Cup is to increase participation of clubs year on year. We aim to achieve this by reaching out to clubs across the country, providing them with the opportunity to fulfil their dream and play on the hallowed turf at Lord’s.

Why should you sponsor?

The Cricketer (est 1921) is opening up submissions for sponsorship of its much coveted National Village Cup.  Your national coverage could be amplified through the competition, it seems like such a good fit! 

The National Village Cup, in its 47th year, is a unique opportunity for brands to immerse and engage with the very heart and soul of the British countryside across the summer.  We wanted to reach out to you to offer an opportunity to align yourselves with a truly traditional, unique and interactive asset.   With a backdrop of an amazing summer of cricket next year including the ICC Champions Trophy.

www.nationalvillagecup.com – the only chance normal people will have to appear and play at Lord’s, you can also see our current supporting sponsors, such as Davidstow, Greene King, , Hardy’s and TM Lewin.

The National Village Cup in Numbers:

• Established 1972
• 300+ active clubs and village communities
• 6,000 players and their networks reached
• 9 month campaign with 2,500 people at the Final at Lord’s
• 7.2 million Twitter impressions in the last 3 months
• 11,000 views of our video content on the day of the final
• 135,000 magazines sold over the competition read by 450,000 people
• Sunday Telegraph reach: 380,000 readers with articles appearing every two weeks for the competition

Reaching over 8 million pairs of eyes including national TV coverage, with 300 clubs, within 32 regions, across the country playing against each other across the Summer, to march towards a spectacular finals day at Lords, the Home of Cricket. 

Sponsorship of the competition would provide a fantastic link to the grassroots game. It is a relationship that will manifest itself in heightened awareness, increased empathy and instant recognition – as a sponsor and brand – leading to the very real potential for brand equity and direct sales through:

Combining our brands to promote and celebrate your key messages through the power of cricket                                                                                                  
Bringing your passion to an iconic British sporting venue
Spreading your message to village communities across our great nation
Showcase the brand through inventive on-ground activation
Creating new authentic and unique content for brand promotion 

For our part, we the endorsement of a heritage title with a modern approach provide a compelling case for consideration. We would like discuss the opportunities this competition and its channels to bring to your brand and how it may amplified your marketing objectives over the upcoming Summer.

Manpreet Pattar

The Cricketer has long established a reputation as the authoritative voice on international, domestic and club cricket, written by people who live the game, for readers who love the game.

Founded in 1921 by "the Grand Old Man" of English cricket, Sir Pelham ‘Plum' Warner, The Cricketer has retained its position as the world’s number one and best-selling cricket magazine. Each issue combines the sharpest cricket minds on the events, teams and players that define the modern era, with a nod to the traditions and values that made our game great. Our mission is to offer an entertaining, informative read, mixing compelling features with gritty analysis and eye-catching design.

As the business approaches its centenary it has added exciting assets to an already impressive portfolio that includes CricketArchive, The Cricketer Events and the National Village Cup. With a growing international readership and interactive digital package to complement our print offering, The Cricketer is evolving as rapidly as the game itself.

Here’s to the next 95 years.

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