Airline reveals Cricket World Cup livery ahead of Summer extravaganza

From left: Tom Bailey, Virender Sehwag, Saqib Mahmood

Emirates today revealed its ICC Cricket World Cup 2019-themed Emirates A380 livery in the build up to one of the world’s most anticipated sporting events this year.

Former India cricketer and ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2011 winner Virender Sehwag, and Emirates-sponsored Lancashire team players Saqib Mahmood and Tom Bailey helped to marshal the newly-emblazoned aircraft out of the Emirates engineering hangar.

The cricket players were accompanied by Emirates engineering staff who had worked on installing the decal, and who were later treated to a game of mini-cricket alongside the aircraft.

This Summer’s Cricket World Cup is expected to significantly boost Manchester’s hospitality economy, with Lancashire’s Old Trafford ground hosting six world cup matches, more than any other host city or town, during the tournament which runs from May 30 to July 14.

Among the matches to be held in Manchester are India versus Pakistan, Australia and South Africa, England’s game against Afghanistan, as well as one of the semi-finals.

Boutros Boutros, divisional senior vice president, corporate communications, marketing & brand for Emirates Airline, said: “Today’s reveal takes us one step closer to bringing the tournament to life for the nations competing in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2019, and for cricket fans across the globe.

“Emirates directly serves customers in nine nations participating in this year’s ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, and we look forward to sharing the excitement of this passionate sport with cricket fans and communities around the world, particularly those who will be feverishly following their national teams as they attempt to clinch cricket glory.”

ICC chief executive, David Richardson, said: “I am delighted to be able to see the Emirates plane with the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup livery making its debut today. It is a wonderful way to celebrate what I know is one of the most eagerly-awaited sport events of the year and fitting that its first journey is to our hosts in England and Wales.”

The World Cup 2019 decal covers a substantial area of A6-EOH, the aircraft which will fly to Manchester, London Gatwick and Heathrow, as well as Johannesburg, Mumbai and other Emirates destinations in both Australia and New Zealand over the coming months.

Emirates has been a global partner of the International Cricket Council (ICC) since 2002, and is a sponsor of both the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019, and the event’s match officials selected from the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of ICC Umpires, the Emirates ICC International Panel of Umpires and the Emirates ICC Elite Panel of Match Referees, which also sees Emirates featured on their official kit.

Emirates also supports other ICC events including the ICC Men’s and Women’s T20 World Cups and the ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup.

In the UK, Emirates is also the official sponsor of Lancashire County Cricket Club and Durham County Cricket Club, including naming rights to both clubs’ playing grounds and their respective T20 representative teams.

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