The search for a jersey sponsor for Team India concluded on Friday with fantasy gaming platform Dream11 being assigned the contract for four years for `358 crore, sources at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) told FE.
The company replaces edtech firm Byju’s, which had terminated its jersey sponsorship in March, amid challenges and headwinds in the sector. While Byju’s had the option to extend its contract till November this year, the firm opted not to do so, BCCI sources said.
The development is significant since Team India has been without a jersey sponsor for the last three months. The national squad played the World Test Championship final earlier this month at the Oval, London without a brand logo on its jersey. This was the first time that this position, much coveted by sponsors had been vacant, amid a funding winter and squeeze on spends by new-age companies and start-ups. Last month, the BCCI had appointed Adidas as Team India’s kit sponsor, replacing Kewal Kiran Clothing, the maker of Killer Jeans, which had come in for just five months in January this year. The contract ended on May 31, 2023.
Byju’s original jersey contract with the BCCI, which began in 2019 after it replaced smartphone maker Oppo, had concluded in March 2022. Byju’s had inherited the valuation of the old contract that amounted to paying Rs. 4.61 crore per bilateral match and Rs. 1.51 crore per match for an ICC tournament. Oppo’s original five-year (2017-22) deal with BCCI was worth `1,079 crore.
Though Byju’s did extend the jersey sponsorship for one extra year (2022-23), it was not keen to take it forward amid layoffs, valuation cuts, funding woes and legal and auditing challenges at the firm.