Ladbrokes will work closely with players and personalities in the competition for live promotional activities and appearances. The company will also be given headline branding across all Ladbrokes Challenge Cup ties, champion a responsible gambling initiative and introduce the inaugural Ladbrokes Player of the Round award.
The tournament, now known as the Ladbrokes Challenge Cup, will commence on the weekend of 31 January. The final will take place at Wembley Stadium on 29 August.
Teams from all levels of sport are invited to compete in the competition, which will be broadcast by the BBC and Sky Sports. Ladbrokes joins tech brands Alcatel One Touch and Elonex on its partnership roster.
Chris Rawlings, commercial director of The RFL, said: "Ladbrokes is the latest major brand to recognise the advantages of associating their brand with Rugby League and it gives me great pleasure to welcome them to the sport’s current existing and impressive commercial portfolio.
"We look forward to working closely with everyone at Ladbrokes and our member clubs to promote this exciting partnership."
Richard Glynn, chief executive of Ladbrokes, added: "This exclusive deal will bring Ladbrokes unprecedented access to the action, which all of our customers have become accustomed to as part of The Ladbrokes Life.
"This year already promises to be bigger and better, and this is a fantastic opportunity for Ladbrokes to engage with Rugby League stakeholders on both an elite and grassroots level to continue the rapid growth of the sport. We're looking forward to the season ahead packed full of excitement, thrills and spills, and world class rugby."
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