The planet’s premier domestic football league, the English Premier League (EPL) has a new major sponsor after it was revealed Cadbury (the chocolate company) had paid the mega dollars required for the naming rights for three seasons starting 2017/18.

The new deal ends Barclays Bank’s 15-year sponsorship of the tournament. It’s understood Barclays would have preferred to continue on as major sponsor, however, the financial firm has been forced to scale back its marketing operations after £20 billion ($A33.2 billion) worth of profit was wiped off of its balance sheets following ongoing misconduct charges over the last five years.

It has not been reported how much the chocolatier paid for the new sponsorship rights, although it’s believed the Barclays’ deal was worth around £40 million ($A66.4 million) a season. Barclays will stay on as the “official bank” of the EPL.

Cadbury is owned by the massive Mondelez conglomerate and it has been reported that it will use its chocolate sponsorship of the EPL to promote “healthier living”. It’s Cadbury’s first foray into sports sponsorship.

The EPL is the most watched football league in the world and is broadcast in 212 territories to a global audience of over 4.7 billion people. In Australia, live matches are available via Optus Sport, while one game per week is available on free-to-air TV via SBS.

Cadbury brand director Francesco Vitrano said of the new deal:  “For over a hundred years Cadbury has been about bringing little moments of joy to people’s lives, something that fits well with the joy created by Premier League football every day – whether it’s a moment of magic that turns a match, watching a game together with loved ones or just debating the weekend’s goals with friends.

“This partnership opens up fantastic opportunities to bring those moments of joy to life in new and different ways – in-store, on our packaging, in the community and other ways we hope will surprise and delight our customers.”

The EPL’s managing director Richard Masters said: “Cadbury’s popularity across the world, and our shared focus on delivering moments of joy, make this a great fit for the Premier League and we are thrilled they have chosen to work with us in what is their first ever partnership in football.

“We are really looking forward to working with Cadbury to celebrate the excitement of the competition, and on the plans we have to jointly grow and enhance their Health for Life project as part of the Premier League’s wide-ranging community work.”