The richest cricket board in the world – Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) showed the world that innovations in sport can help keep one right up the ladder. In 2006/07, the BCCI had reported an annual income of INR 651.83 crore (USD 139.25 million), the highest for any cricketing board globally. However that did not prevent the authorities from going a step further to ensure the board maintains its top position in the cricketing world.
The board launched the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008 – a marquee Twenty20 cricket tournament that captured the imagination of millions worldwide. Within the first year itself, the IPL became a major money spinner for the BCCI. The board earned USD 1.5 billion in TV rights for a 10-year period – a single deal that catapulted cricket amongst the most valuable sports in the world. In the second season, the IPL itself earned over INR 500 crore (USD 106.81 million) in ad revenues, and for the third has already garnered future ad earnings of INR 650 crore (USD 138.85 million). Such is the pull of the tournament, that global advertisers such as LG Electronics and Pepsi has chosen its brand with the tournament nearly four months in advance.
Buoyed by the interest in the domestic Twenty20 tournament, the BCCI has upped the ante. This time it is a shirt sponsorship deal that the board is keen on signing. While the deal itself is not newsworthy, the valuations are eye popping. If the INR 800-crore four-year shirt sponsorship deal for the Indian national team comes through, it will eclipse the INR 621-crore (USD 132.66 million) shirt sponsorship deal between Manchester United and Aon Corp for a similar duration. This could possibly make the BCCI deal one of the biggest ever shirt sponsorship deals in the world of sport. While reports suggest that the existing sponsor, Sahara Group may not bid at such high prices, others including Bharti Airtel have shown interest in the same. The Sahara Group paid USD 90.54 million (INR 425 crore) for the sponsorship of the Indian team in 2005.
The board launched the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008 – a marquee Twenty20 cricket tournament that captured the imagination of millions worldwide. Within the first year itself, the IPL became a major money spinner for the BCCI. The board earned USD 1.5 billion in TV rights for a 10-year period – a single deal that catapulted cricket amongst the most valuable sports in the world. In the second season, the IPL itself earned over INR 500 crore (USD 106.81 million) in ad revenues, and for the third has already garnered future ad earnings of INR 650 crore (USD 138.85 million). Such is the pull of the tournament, that global advertisers such as LG Electronics and Pepsi has chosen its brand with the tournament nearly four months in advance.
Buoyed by the interest in the domestic Twenty20 tournament, the BCCI has upped the ante. This time it is a shirt sponsorship deal that the board is keen on signing. While the deal itself is not newsworthy, the valuations are eye popping. If the INR 800-crore four-year shirt sponsorship deal for the Indian national team comes through, it will eclipse the INR 621-crore (USD 132.66 million) shirt sponsorship deal between Manchester United and Aon Corp for a similar duration. This could possibly make the BCCI deal one of the biggest ever shirt sponsorship deals in the world of sport. While reports suggest that the existing sponsor, Sahara Group may not bid at such high prices, others including Bharti Airtel have shown interest in the same. The Sahara Group paid USD 90.54 million (INR 425 crore) for the sponsorship of the Indian team in 2005.
Why the deal can be a successful one?
The deal is essentially for the Indian national men’s team. Over the course of time, the Indian cricket team has proved itself as an important tool for brand managers. An ad consisting of Indian cricketing heroes can sell a product by the millions. A recent advertisement by Pepsi which utilises a majority of the Indian team playing against local youth in the backwaters of Kerala drives home the point well.
Secondly, with cricket going global due to the IPL and with India at the centre of the global attraction, it only makes sense for BCCI to utilise the global visibility of Indian cricket and capitalise on the same.
Thirdly, global companies have repeatedly shown interest in Indian cricket. Brands such as LG, Pepsi, Vodafone and others have associated themselves with many tournaments involving India or Indian cricket in the past. The deep pockets of these companies may have been another trigger for the BCCI to increase the sponsorship deal size.
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