JSW Sports, the sports arm of Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group, has ventured into the business of negotiating brand endorsement deals for Asian Games’ athletes that the firm currently trains. At the recently concluded Asian Games, JSW Sports supported 31 athletes, who won 17 medals out of India’s total medal tally of 107.
“We are currently evaluating various deals ranging from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 5 crore depending on the stature of the individual athlete and the scope of the deal. These deals range from product support to influencer campaigns, content partnerships, brand endorsements and appearances,” Divyanshu Singh, chief operating officer at JSW Sports said.
To begin with, JSW Sports has closed four large endorsement deals for javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra with an annual endorsement of Rs 4-5 crore.
“One of the biggest challenges with the marketability of Olympic athletes and sports in India has been the lack of awareness. Hence, we work closely with brands to give a marketing push to these athletes who deserve a lot more for their contribution to Indian sport and nation building,” he added.
Further, the firm would work with athletes including Sakshi Malik (freestyle wrestler), Murali Sreeshankar (long jumper), Jemimah Rodrigues (cricketer) and Linthoi Chanambam (judo) among others.
JSW Sports has helped Neeraj Chopra bag advertising contracts from brands such as Under Armour, Gillette, Noise Lifestyle Tech, Tata AIA, Swiss Tourism and Limca Sports. Firms such as Puma, Toyota (global brand deal), Limca Sportz have signed deals with Sreeshankar Murali, and that for Jemima Rodrigues include Hyundai, Nike and Crocs footwear.
Ceat, Google, Nike and Hyundai have been roped in for Shafali Verma (cricket), he said, adding, there were interests for brand endorsements from sports apparel, nutrition, wearables and BFSI companies.
JSW Group has been supporting sports through various initiatives anchored through JSW Foundation, JSW Sports and the Inspire Institute of Sport. It supported Asian Games gold medalists such as Avinash Sable (3,000 metre steeplechase), Parul Chaudhary (5,000 metre steeplechase) and Amoj Jacob, Muhhamed Ajmal and Rajesh Ramesh (all 4×400 metre relay).
Silver medalists such as Ancy Sojan (long jump), Muhammed Ajmal, Vithya Ramraj and Rajesh Ramesh (4×400 mixed relay), Tejaswin Shankar (decathlon) and bronze medalists including Preeti Sai Pawar (boxing), Vithya Ramraj (400 metre hurdles) and Praveen Chithravel (triple jump) were other athletes supported by the firm.