Table Tennis England has signed a further extension to its agreement with its Official Clothing Supplier, Butterfly.

It means England squads of all age groups will continue to be supplied with kit through Tees Sport, the Butterfly partner for specialist equipment in the British Isles.

The announcement comes as England stars Liam Pitchford, Paul Drinkhall, Sam Walker and Tin-Tin Ho prepare to begin their World Championships campaigns in Houston, Texas, later today, wearing the striking St George Cross kit.

It also co-incides with the centenary of the table tennis governing body in England.

Hajo Nolten, CFO of Tamasu Butterfly Europe said: “We are pleased, together with our colleagues from our Japanese Headquarters, to continue to support the English National teams in all of their competitions and provide specially designed kit to enable them to look their best when they play their matches.

“We are grateful for the close co-operation that we have enjoyed with the English Association for many years and welcome the chance to invest further in the sport in your 100th year.”

Alan Ransome OBE, Managing Director of Tees Sport, added: “We are pleased to continue our close cooperation with Butterfly Japan and Butterfly Europe and to continue to support the English National teams and serve all your kit requirements.

“We wish the players every success in the World Championships in Houston this week and in the ongoing programme of competitions at junior and cadet level as well as for the seniors going forward.”

Head of England Performance Matt Stanforth said: “We’re very pleased to extend our high-quality partnership with Butterfly and Tees Sport and there is no better time to announce this news, with England’s top players about to get their campaigns under way in Houston at the first World Championships since 2019.

“Butterfly and Tees Sport have supplied an iconic design for the current England shirt and although our players have not yet had many chances to wear it because of the pandemic, we look forward to seeing it catch everyone’s eye in international competition venues over the coming years.”

The St George Cross design is the latest in a series of bespoke kits supplied by Butterfly since 2015. As well as the cross of St George, the senior design also features the England Table Tennis Team logo designed around the traditional three leopards badge, as well as the logos of Butterfly and Tees Sport.

Butterfly will also supply kit to the England Junior, Aspire and Hopes squads, as well as Table Tennis England staff.