The commercial power of brand Indian Premier League is to the fore as the Board of Control for Cricket in India has invited expressions of interest for the league title.
E-education tech company Unacademy’s entry in the title sponsorship rights bid process, has intensified rival Byju’s interest in the precious marketing property.
Byju’s, the sponsor of the Indian national teams, is among brands confirmed to have acquired the bid documents.
Amazon and Dream11 as being speculated for a while are the other two brands. Reliance Jio too is tipped to have bought the papers despite initial disinterest in a one-season deal.
The winning bid will get the IPL naming rights only from September 18 to December 31. The short span of the contract period has been a dissuading factor for several other brands.
“Jio can spring a surprise,” a leading media buyer closing monitoring the development told SportzFront. “Entry of Unacademy and Byju’s will make the battle for the rights somewhat interesting. The BCCI should be happy about the entire scenario.”
“It does make sense for now (for Jio)! Reliance is an Indian behemoth and its business spread is wide and vast. The brand and its owners have forever been closed to IPL in particular and cricket in general. Makes sense as Jio unfolds a very internecine physical, digital and phygital play ahead!,” says brand expert Harish Bijoor, founder of Harish Bijoor Inc. “Depends on the price paid.”
Unacademy has an existing “Official Partner” deal for the IPL. The brand is gunning for a “complete” presence during the league and keep out the rival, which has a strong presence in Indian cricket.
Byju’s, among the biggest spenders on cricket in India, too won’t be ready to miss the IPL opportunity.
“There will be an increased presence of the e-education and e-sports brands in the IPL,” said the media buyer. “These two sectors have flourished the most during the lockdown period. They will be eager to retain the edge as the businesses will gradually shift back from virtual to real.”
Dream11, off course, remains another strong contender.
Brands will have to submit their interests by the end of the day tomorrow (Friday). The winning bid will be announced on August 18, Tuesday.