By Rafiq Vayani
DUBAI: As Global Partner of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Emirates is once again in full swing as Official Airline Partner of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023, taking place across India and running from 5 October to 19 November.
Kicking off the 13th edition of the tournament, Emirates is sharing its excitement for the game with a playful video featuring Indian wicket-keeper batsman, Dinesh Karthik. In the clip, the famous cricketer is seen enjoying the action of the matches live in the air on Emirates’ inflight entertainment system, while seated in the comfort of Premium Economy. Seats in Emirates Premium Economy will be available on its routes to Mumbai and Bangalore from 29 October.
Hosted across ten cities in India, the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup will bring together ten teams from across cricket-playing nations, including 2019 defending champions, England, to battle it out for the coveted Cricket World Cup Trophy. The silver and gold trophy has already made its way to India ahead of the tournament.
The first 45 matches are scheduled across Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Dharmshala, Delhi, Chennai, Lucknow, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Pune, and Mumbai in the run-up to the semi-finals, taking place in Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai and Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The final will be played on 19 November at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, deemed to be the largest sports stadium in the world with a seating capacity of 132,000 spectators.
Emirates and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup
As Official Airline Partner of the 2023 Men’s Cricket World Cup, fans of the sport travelling onboard Emirates flights during the tournament can tune in to Sport 24 and Sport 24 Extra and never miss the action. At the 48 matches taking place across India, Emirates will enjoy a strong presence at the stadiums, with hospitality and ticketing rights, in addition to select in-stadium activations to build on the excitement.
Cricket lovers can follow #CWC23 as well as the ICC’s Instagram and Facebook pages to see a new and exciting Emirates Fly Better Moment of the Day, capturing the best catches, hit and runs outs and more after each match.
The Men’s Cricket World Cup is held every four years and is the most popular global cricket event on the sporting calendar. This edition will be the first to be held solely in India and will feature Dinesh Karthik making his commentary debut in a World Cup.
Emirates has a long-standing association with the ICC and all its major events including the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, ICC Women’s T20 World Cup and the ICC World Test Championship.
The ICC partnership also sees Emirates featured on the official kit of the ICC Elite and International Panels of Umpires, having been the main sponsor of the Emirates Elite and International Panels of ICC Umpires since 2002, when the panels were formed to officiate Test Matches and One Day Internationals around the world. Alongside the Umpires, Emirates sponsors the Elite and International Panels of ICC Match Referees. Together with branding and media exposure to cricket fans around the world, Emirates also transports umpires and referees to international events as the Global Partner of the ICC.
Connecting cricket lovers across the globe
Emirates is committed to supporting cricket worldwide, connecting with fans and communities across Asia, Australasia and the UK. Besides its major partnership with the ICC and associated events, Emirates also engages with cricket lovers through its long-standing partnership with Durham County Cricket Club in the UK, since 2010, and as title sponsor of the Durham Lancashire Emirates Trophy. The airline also began a ten-year naming rights sponsorship in 2013 for Emirates Old Trafford, one of England’s most historic and premier cricket grounds also home to Lancashire County Cricket Club.
Emirates launched its services to India in 1985 and since then has grown its India operations to serve a total of nine destinations across the country. Emirates currently operates 167 flights per week from Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Kochi, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Thiruvananthapuram.
For more information, visit emirates.com.
