The rank of cricket fans in corporate India is swelling. A large number of brands, which had so far kept away from sports sponsorships, are making a beeline to be part of the Indian cricket bandwagon.
Companies such as DLF and Unitech are becoming title sponsors for cricket series and tournaments.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India, on is part, is looking at raking in more moolah through additional sponsorships like the official perfume of the Indian cricket team.
The team will soon have an official chewing gum and Perfetti is in talks with BCCI for this contract. Moreover, infotech companies also want to get associated with Indian cricket stars to launch consumer centric products in the country.
"There are so many categories for which companies can obtain licences. Australia has awarded almost 50-60 such licences," said BCCI's Secretary Niranjan Shah.
BCCI stands to increase its revenues manifold through licensing. While the players keep 26 per cent, the board gets the remaining 74 per cent.
In contrast, BCCI only gets to keep four per cent of the revenue from television rights. The players get 26 per cent and the rest of the 70 per cent is shared by the 25 member associations.
The areas that are expected to be given out are official formal clothing, sunglasses, on-air and on-road transportation and drinking water as well. The board expects to rake in millions through these deals.
It is looking for an official licensee for the team's travel kit and formal wear. Sources indicate that Reid & Taylor was a serious contender for this.
The sources also said BCCI wanted to adopt the FIFA model of having official partners cutting across various categories. Sanjay Kacker, branch head - north India, Percept D'Mark, said mobile service providers and realty companies are also finalising their plans to enter cricket sponsorship.
The biggest advantage of cricket is that it provides a pan-India awareness, explained Sundar Raman, managing director, MindShare for North and East. He added one could anticipate retail companies to also follow a similar route.
Real estate developer DLF entered into cricket sponsorship by becoming the official sponsor for the two matches against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi earlier this year. Now, Unitech, another realty company on expansion mode, is the title sponsor for the upcoming tri series in Sri Lanka.
