Monday 21st July 2014 – Bridgetown, Barbados: Limacol Caribbean Premier League team, the Barbados Tridents, have today confirmed American carrier JetBlue Airways as the Official Airline of the cricket franchise. The deal will see Tridents players sporting the JetBlue logo on their team jerseys for the remainder of the competition.
JetBlue carries more than 30 million customers a year to 86 cities in the U.S., Caribbean, and Latin America with an average of 850 daily flights, and its destinations include Barbados, St Lucia, Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago. JetBlue offers year-round, daily flights between Barbados and New York JFK, and is currently offering a second daily flight to Barbados during Crop Over season in the summer months.
The Tridents, captained by Kieron Pollard, made the semi-finals in 2013’s Limacol CPL, and the side boasts international stars like Dwayne Smith, Shoaib Malik, Ravi Rampaul and Jason Holder. The team returns to Barbados for three matches, starting on Wednesday 23rd July at 4pm, against the St. Lucia Zouks. On Friday 25th, they will take on the Antigua Hawksbills, while last year’s runners-up, Guyana Amazon Warriors, are the visitors on Saturday 26th July for the Tridents’ final home game.
Jamie Stewart, Commercial Director, Limacol Caribbean Premier League, said: “It’s a sign of the wide-reaching appeal of the CPL that we’re able to secure sponsorship from an internationally renowned US carrier. We’re looking forward to a fruitful relationship with JetBlue, and we’re confident this deal will help spread the word about CPL to new audiences.”
Robin Hayes, President of JetBlue, said: “Excitement for the CPL in the Caribbean is at a similar level to excitement for the NFL or Major League Baseball in the United States. Barbados is one of our most popular destinations in the region, and given JetBlue’s commitment to the destination, it made perfect sense to get on board with the Tridents. We wish them every success in the CPL 2014.”
The Limacol Caribbean Premier League runs from 11 July to 16 August, with 30 matches taking place over 37 days. In addition, the final week of the tournament, in St Kitts and Nevis, will host Beefy’s Bash, an all-star charity match featuring Sir Ian Botham, Brian Lara and Piers Morgan, as well as a concert by hip-hop megastar, Rick Ross.