Tatas replace Vivo as IPL title sponsors
MUMBAI: Tatas will replace Chinese smartphone makers Vivo as title sponsor of the Indian Premier League in a matching deal of Rs. 440 crore per year. This, after Vivo decided to pull out three months before the start of IPL 2022. Vivo had two of its fiveyear (2018-22) contract still in place and the rights will now be transferred to the Indian conglomerate.
“They will come on board for two years, with the BCCI getting a slightly bigger amount,” IPL chairman Brijesh Patel said on Tuesday.
Vivo’s association with IPL has not been smooth. The two parties parted ways in 2020 in the wake of anti-China sentiments in the country following a tense border stand-off. BCCI then roped in Dream 11, and took a 50 percent cut for that edition which was played behind closed doors in the UAE, while keeping the Vivo deal on hold.
Despite coming on board again in 2021 to honour the contract, Vivo had looked for an exit, scouting for interested parties for transfer of rights. Tatas agreed with the Rs. 440 crore per year valuation, leaving all the three parties happy.
“We are truly happy that India’s largest and most trusted business group has believed in the IPL growth story. Together with the Tata Group, we will look to take Indian cricket and the IPL forward to greater heights,” BCCI secretary, Jay Shah, said in a statement.
IPL GC clears Lucknow and Ahmedabad
The IPL Governing Council which met virtually on Tuesday also gave the formal ‘letter of Intent’ to the two new franchises from Ahmedabad and Lucknow. CVC Capital, which owns the Ahmedabad franchise, was cleared following a go-ahead from an independent committee of legal experts that went into its association with a betting firm.
CVC and the RPSG Groupowned Lucknow franchise became the 9th and 10th teams to enter the IPL fold in October by making successful bids of Rs 5,625 crore and Rs. 7,090 crore respectively. Both teams will be given about two weeks to sign a maximum of 3 players (two domestic, one foreign) before the player auctions. This year’s mega auctions are scheduled to be held in Bengaluru on February 12 and 13.