Dream11 bags IPL’S title rights

MUMBAI: Dream11, a market leader in the fantasy gaming space, will be the title sponsor of the Indian Premier League (IPL) this season after it was awarded the sponsorship rights for ~222 crore on Tuesday—nearly half the ~440 crore Vivo India, the Indian arm of the Chinese smartphone maker, was paying.

“In the given circumstances, we are happy with the deal. These rights are only for four months and only for this edition of the IPL,” the tournament’s chairman Brijesh Patel said.

Two other companies were in the running for rights to the 13th edition of the IPL, which will begin in the United Arab Emirates on September 19—Byju’s, which placed a bid of ~201 crore, and Unacademy, whose bid was ~171 crore. Both are education technology companies; Byju’s is the jersey sponsor for the Indian cricket team.

Earlier this month, Vivo, which holds the title sponsorship rights for the IPL for five years till 2021 for which it agreed to pay ~2,199 crore, decided to suspend its partnership with the Board of Control for Cricket in India I for the 2020 season.

Although no reason was cited by either party, the decision came in the backdrop of antichina sentiment in India after military tensions between the two countries along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh, where a violent brawl on June 15 resulted in the death of 20 Indian soldiers and an unspecified number of Chinese troops.

Dream11 has a Chinese investor—internet giant Tencent Holdings Ltd.

BCCI has roped in two more associate partners for the IPL in Unacademy and Cred, a credit card billing platform. Tata Altroz and Ceat Tyres remain the other associate sponsors while the Future Group has exited, said Patel.