Castleford Tigers set for stunning opening round attendance

Castleford Tigers have the difficult task of starting the Super League season against Champions Wigan Warriors.

Making matters worse, Wigan take on Penrith Panthers next week in the World Club Challenge and clubs typically look to generate momentum for such a fixture so the Warriors will arrive at the Jungle in determined mood.

It will also be a historic game being the first shown on BBC after their new deal was agreed with the sport last week.

However, despite the reasons for trepidation, the Tigers have plenty of reasons to be happy with the club and that is reflective of the ticket sales.

They have sold out two entire sections and have less than a thousand tickets available for their opening fixture in a terrific development for the club.

This means the club is set for a five figure attendance for their first game of the season.

Castleford Tigers on the rise off the field

This week Castleford Tigers Foundation welcome luxury fashion brand, Burberry, as a new partner and supporter of young people in Yorkshire. The two-year partnership will form part of the brand’s Burberry Inspire programme, an initiative dedicated to nurturing and fostering positive transformations in the lives and communities of young people.

With a shared commitment to helping young people to aspire, dream and excel, Burberry’s support will enhance the in-school programmes of the Castleford Tigers Foundation, enabling the organisation to help more students have greater access to education, learning and development opportunities[MOU2] .

Supporting three transformative Castleford Tigers Foundation programmes, the partnership channels the influence of sport to help students in Yorkshire better engage with their education and to create opportunities for future development. The programmes Burberry is supporting include:

· Tigers Mathletes – a numeracy-based programme designed to help students in primary years 5-6 that are struggling with traditional forms of mathematics by positioning mathematical equations around rugby-themed problems.

· Tigers Den – taking inspiration from TV series ‘Dragons Den’, this programme tasks students in secondary years 8-9 with creating a micro-business that is both profitable and has a positive impact on their school or community. By providing an opportunity to learn about social and business enterprise in a group setting, this programme helps students develop their communication and collaboration skills, while also building their business acumen and confidence.

· The ‘Future Stars’ programme – an innovative talent identification and development initiative aimed at year 9-11 students and designed to unearth the sports stars of the future. The programme seeks out individuals with exceptional athletic potential and provides them with professional coaching as well as opportunities to explore a range of sports, including and outside of rugby league.

Both Castleford Tigers players and Burberry employees will also volunteer their time to help implement the programmes in schools, giving students the opportunity to connect with and learn from business and sports professionals.

Burberry VP of Internal Manufacturing, Lise Edwards-Warrener commented, ‘We are so excited to be working with the Castleford Tigers Foundation to help young people in Yorkshire develop critical skills and realise their potential. With a large team here in Castleford and a deep-rooted connection to the region, this partnership is especially close to our hearts and one that we look forward to seeing flourish over the next two years.’

Castleford Tigers Foundation Head of Operations, Mat Lancaster added, ‘It’s fantastic to be working with a strong brand such as Burberry to enable the Castleford Tigers Foundation to deliver this 2-year programme of impactful support into the local community, using sport as the inspiration and bringing the two sectors together under one project. Burberry has a rich history in the Town of Castleford and it’s great that staff will also be a part of the project delivery.’

Commercial Director, Laura Kirk commented on the partnership: “It’s fantastic for the Castleford Tigers Foundation to have the support of an international brand of Burberry’s calibre and we’re really looking forward to harnessing this relationship over the course of the two-year programme, engaging Burberry employees to help deliver some really impactful work in our local communities. Our mission is to work with businesses with strong ties to Castleford to achieve the long-term goals of our foundation and Burberry is the perfect partner with its international reach and longstanding history with the Town”