The grocer will next week unveil a deal that could in time see table tennis tables springing up in Sainsbury’s stores around the country.

 

It is teaming up with the English Table Tennis Association to help get more people actively involved in the sport with a view to improving Britain’s performance in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics.

 

The agreement is part of a scheme devised by the British Olympic Association (BOA) and called the FTSE-BOA Partnership Programme.

 

The idea is to pair up sports governing bodies with big companies in an effort to accelerate their development.

 

But instead of getting the blue-chips to write out big cheques, as under traditional sponsorship deals, what the sports get is a chance to tap into the management expertise of a top multinational.

 

No money changes hands.

 

Rob Crumbie, Sainsbury’s head of sponsorship, said the food retailer would be offering its “money-cannot-buy expertise” to help table tennis attract the very best support and create a very engaged player base.

 

He added that the sport could be played by families which made it a good fit with the supermarket’s Active Kids scheme, under which customers earn vouchers exchangeable for sports equipment.

 

Richard Yule, chief executive of the English Table Tennis Association, said the agreement was “very timely”.

 

He said: “As an Olympic sport, we have a great opportunity coming up in 2012 and the association needs to build capacity to take advantage of growing interest.

 

“All of Sainsbury’s customers are potentially our members,” he said.

 

It is estimated that, while around 50,000 Britons play competitive table tennis, as many as two million play every now and again.

 

A number of tie-ups have already been established under the BOA scheme. Marks and Spencer is paired with modern pentathlon and Snowsport GB with British Airways.

 

Two executives from property company Land Securities have joined the main board of British Volleyball in an arrangement that has also seen beach volleyball showcased at Birmingham’s Bullring centre.