Surrey Sports Park is proud to announce their involvement in the brand new National Badminton League (NBL), established by BADMINTON England. The NBL will consist of six franchised teams featuring GB’s best players and new, emerging talent. The ‘Surrey Smashers’ will form part of a six franchise line-up in the competition’s inaugural season, playing and training at the University of Surrey-owned Surrey Sports Park.
Chief Executive of BADMINTON England, Adrian Christy said, “I am incredibly excited to announce the launch of the first ever professional badminton league in the UK. Badminton is booming in this country right now and the NBL gives fans a chance to get behind a team and support their favourite players.”
The NBL will feature new rules that present a fast, exciting and attacking format that’s thrilling to watch live and on TV. Matches will be played to the best of five games with men’s and women’s singles, men’s and women’s doubles and a mixed game. Each game will be played to a new abbreviated scoring system and will include an exciting tie break set.
Christy added [on the new format], “This amazing new project will present our sport in such an exciting way – the fastest racket sport just got even faster. It will not only showcase our current players but provide a real inspiration for younger players to want to be part of in the future.”
Olympic Silver medallist and former World Champion, Nathan Robertson who is also BADMINTON England’s ambassador for the NBL added: “It is a game changer for our sport. The modifications to the rules mean games will be faster than ever. The new rules will enable games to get to critical points quicker, making it so much more exciting for the fans and the players. There will be no interruption to games, meaning non-stop action. It’s fantastic news for teams, players and fans. I just wish the NBL could have been around when I was playing!”
With the games faster than ever, the non-stop new format will open the sport up to bigger audiences and millions of new fans, especially with a global TV rights deal in place. As the first ever national league in the UK, the NBL will be shown live on Sky Sports, which gives fans a chance to get behind their favourite national players and brand new teams. All matches from every match night will also be available via digital streaming in the UK and across the world, taking the NBL to a global audience.
Adrian Christy has added, “I am delighted that we have the support of Sky Sports, a brand which has led the way in sport innovation for many years now. Key to the NBL is taking badminton to new audiences, and Sky is brilliant at doing that.”
And Sky Sports Commercial Director Richard Verow said, “We’re looking forward to working with BADMINTON England in this innovative new format.”
The NBL season kicks off on 6 October 2014 with monthly match nights through to April 2015, which will then be followed by a one day knockout competition featuring the top four teams in June 2015. In this inaugural season, successful franchise applications from Birmingham, Derby, Loughborough, Milton Keynes, Nottingham and Surrey will play against each other once, in a mixture of home and away matches.
The teams will purchase players in an auction format on 2 June with each team allowed to feature eight players. Teams will feature the best talent from this country including Olympians, Team England players and a selection of European and International talent will also be available to purchase at the auction.
The ‘Surrey Smashers’ will be spearheaded by ex-England international coach Hayley Connor, who led her Surrey side to a County Championship title last weekend following an unbeaten Premiership season.
New Franchise Director, Gavin Baker has said, “I am thrilled to be able to announce our involvement in what will be a fantastic new direction for badminton in England, opening up the sport to a new audience not just here but across the world. Surrey Sports Park has a passion for sport from participation and grassroots level, through to elite and performance. The NBL presents us with a chance to add another string to our bow and bring elite badminton to the county.”
James Martin
Image sourced from: http://tinyurl.com/ms8qyof