The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the biggest franchise-based cricket league in the world. With over a decade of popularity, the IPL’s mass-visibility is now attracting more brands than ever. According to the financial consultancy Duff & Phelps, the IPL was valued at a whopping $6.8 billion in 2019.
In the early seasons of IPL, the sponsorships included only the well-established business giants. However, as the years’ progress, things have changed and evolved. More and more start-ups are a part of the league by offering their sponsorships.
IPL and start-ups sponsorships
Since in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic and the uncertainty surrounding, the AD revenue generated may not be as usual. However, when the largest spenders on advertisements, the consumer durable industry stepped down, the start-ups rose to the rescue.
Dream 11 had paid 222 crores for the title sponsorship of IPL. Whereas, the previous sponsor, VIVO was paying a whopping 440 crores every season. However, VIVO was dropped out due to the rising border disputes between India and China. Dream 11 has been the sponsor of IPL since 2019, itself being a unicorn start-up.
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The IPL was valued at a whopping $6.8 billion in 2019.
Other prominent start-ups that bought the sponsorship includes Paytm as the umpiring partner. Even, Unacademy and CRED were listed as the official sponsors of the IPL by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
While some start-ups partnered directly with the BCCI for the IPL sponsorship, many others focus on providing sponsorship to individual teams. The gaming start-up Mobile Premier League (MPL), which is a direct competitor of Dream 11 also gained immense popularity due to its sponsorship with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). MPL was the official sponsor for both teams in 2020. BYJUSs also was a part of the IPL sponsorship with the broadcasters in 2020.
Why are crores being spend on sponsorships?
IPL is one of the biggest sporting events in the world, with an ever-expanding audience for cricket in India, it is undoubtedly one of the best ways to promote and advertise your brand. A budding sanitary and personal hygiene company, Niine joined hands with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2020. The logo of a sanitary napkins brand on the RR’s jersey stood-out as in the country there is a lot of taboo associated with menstrual cycles. The business this sponsorship got them was astonishing, to say the least. Where the local brand struggled in selling their products worth 3 lakhs to the distributors, now those same distributors are placing orders for over 40 lakhs. That’s the one-of-a-kind reach to offer. If your start-up has sufficient funds and your target audience does include the enormous crowd of the IPL, investing in the sponsorship deals is a decision to consider definitely.
