By Jacob Kamaras

June 25 (Bloomberg) -- The New York Yankees signed Yili Group Holding Co., China's biggest dairy products company, to a sponsorship agreement, the first between a Major League Baseball team and a Chinese company.

Yili will have advertisements at Yankee Stadium and in the game programs, the team said in a news release. Financial terms of the sponsorship weren't disclosed.

The Yankees last week became the first major-league team to sign Chinese players: left-handed pitcher Kai Liu and catcher Zhenwang Zhang, both 19. The Yankees sent four executives to the country in January to complete a partnership with the Chinese Baseball Association. Major League Baseball is trying to expand the sport in China, the world's most populous nation, and may stage games there next year.

``This agreement with Yili is yet another example of how far-reaching the Yankees brand has become and how dedicated we are to growing baseball, and the business of baseball, in China,'' team President Randy Levine said in a statement.

Yili's brand will be featured when the Yankees introduce the players in a July 6 new conference at Yankee Stadium, the team said.

Closely held Yili has had the top-selling ice cream in China for the past 11 years, according to its Web site, and has more than 130 dairy plants.

To contact the reporter on this story: Jacob Kamaras in New York at jkamaras@bloomberg.net

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