Indian Premier League (IPL) title sponsorship has been one of the causes of concern for the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) since last year. After Chinese smartphone maker, Vivo, pulled out of the league sponsorship just weeks before the IPL 2020 season started in the UAE, the league is still without a title sponsor.
VIVO’s exit as Indian Premier League 2021 title sponsor is all but confirmed and Dream11 and Unacademy are in the fray to replace the smartphone brand.
Indian Premier League 2021: Vivo Unlikely To Return As Title Sponsor
Vivo is unlikely to return as the Indian Premier League 2021 title sponsor having paused its contract with the BCCI last season. Dream11 had come in as IPL title sponsor last season after Vivo’s exit from the sponsorship. Chinese brands were targeted following the COVID-19 pandemic when begun in China.
Vivo is reportedly looking to transfer its contract to either Dream11 or Unacademy ahead of the 2021 season which is set to be held in India from 11th April onwards. It has been known for some time that the return of Vivo is unlikely amidst the continuous political strain between India and China, while it has now been reported that the mobile-manufacturing company is all but set to exit, paving way for a new sponsor.
As far as the new title sponsors of the Indian Premier League are concerned, the names of the Edu-tech platform Unacademy and fantasy sports platform Dream11 are afloat doing the rounds. Dream11 had sponsored the T20 league last season as well after Vivo’s last-minute withdrawal.
Indian Premier League 2021: Vivo’s Exit Is All But Confirmed But Vivo’s Logo To Be Used At Auctions
Vivo is looking to transfer the remainder of its contract to another brand as it is unable to honour the agreement due to the Indo-China political situation, as per a report in Outlook.
“With Indo-China relationship unlikely to get better anytime soon, Vivo clearly wants to ‘assign’ their rights to any company willing to pay a fair price,” said the source.
A BCCI official also commented on the matter as he said to a reporter that Vivo’s exit is all but confirmed and Vivo is looking to transfer its pending liabilities.
“It’s almost final that Vivo will exit the IPL title sponsorship deal by mutual consent with the board. It was suspended for the 2020 edition. However, there is a clause that allows them to transfer their pending liabilities as one-time title sponsors on the new winner. If the board agrees on principle, it can happen.”
“Dream11 and Unacademy will place their offers to Vivo. Unacademy in any case is an associate sponsor and they are ready to offer a higher amount in order to acquire the rights from Vivo,” an industry insider told the news agency.
Another name that has surfaced for title sponsorship is Moblie Premier League (MPL) but it would not be allowed to bid for the title sponsorship as its direct rival, Dream11, has been a title sponsor. The scarcity of time may see BCCI avoid taking fresh bids for the title sponsorship and instead depend on the transfer of rights from Vivo to a new brand that could fetch them the same amount that the smartphone brand was obliged to pay.
“Look, Vivo paid approximately ₹440 crores ( ₹2190 crore for 5 years). Now if BCCI invites bids, just like last year when Dream11 paid ₹222 crores, it might increase but can’t be doubled. But if there is a transfer of rights, the old amount could be matched or even bettered,” the source said.
The BCCI is reportedly looking to wrap-up the entire deal quickly but as things stand, the Vivo logo will be used at the Indian Premier League 2021 auction in Chennai.
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