MUMBAI: Paytm has outbid Micromax to bag the title sponsorships of BCCI’s domestic and International matches for a period of four years. The winning bid was at a price of Rs 203.28 crore to be paid over the 4 years term.
It may be recalled that Star India was the title sponsor for BCCI's international and domestic matches till 31 March, 2014.
BCCI Honorary Secretary Anurag Thakur said, “We are elated to have Paytm as our homes series title sponsors. They are one of the new generation companies and we are delighted to partner with them. Having them for next four years gives the stability and continuity to Indian cricket. With nearly 84 matches scheduled over the next 4 years with all major countries playing in India we are hopeful that Paytm will be able to build a strong and strategic association with Cricket. We are also happy that the realisation has increased by 20 per cent. It augurs well for Indian cricket. I am thankful to Paytm for their interest and faith in Indian Cricket and welcome them on board.”
Paytm founder & CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma added, “Cricket is the dream sport for us in India. Cricket epitomises the Paytm values of passion, hard work and team effort. We are very happy to partner with the BCCI and cheer for Indian cricket with millions of fans. Over the next 4 years, we will continue to invest strongly in cricket and other sports. As a growing brand which has big plans for a billion strong Indians, there is no better platform than cricket in India.”
The BCCI Marketing Committee met in Delhi today (30 July) to open the tender documents received by the Cricket Board for title sponsorship relating to its international and domestic home series/tournaments for the next four seasons. The period for which Invitation To Tender was sought for by the BCCI includes the 2015-16, 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
“The rights on offer include sponsor branding of the relevant series with the title sponsor logo, official designation as the ‘Title Sponsor’ of the relevant international or domestic series, visibility at the stadium during both international and domestic matches, broadcast sponsorship rights, and a host of other rights,” the Board had said in a media release earlier.
The sponsorship deal has been sealed by media agency Maxus.
Maxus South Asia managing director Kartik Sharma said, “We are extremely happy for partnering with Paytm, and helping them win the BCCI rights. Until now cricket has been dominated by other mature categories and this is the first time a e-commerce brand will be using the platform to connect and engage with its consumer base."
GroupM ESP national director Vinit Karnik said, "We are happy to have stitched the entire deal for PayTM. The bidding process to representation was an exciting journey and we are extremely euphoric to be a part of this crucial and big sponsorship deal. It's the beginning a new era. We have a young team India and PayTM would leverage this associating being a young player in the e- commerce business ecosystem .From a business point of view, it ushers a new wave of e-commerce companies raising the bar several notches higher to build a young and robust tech India."
Maxus senior VP Shankar Nath added, “We are delighted at becoming the Title Sponsor for all BCCI India cricket for the next 4 years. We firmly believe the partnership with cricket in India will help establish us even more as the dominant mobile commerce company in the country. As a growing brand which has big plans for a billion strong Indians there is no platform better than cricket in India.”
Star India holds the broadcast, internet and mobile rights to Indian cricket until March 2018.
