The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) governing body has not yet managed to secure significant interest in its title sponsorship rights for home national team matches, according to reports.
The BCCI initially put these rights covering the next multi-year cycle up for sale on July 20, with a deadline for submissions of August 13. However, various media outlets, including Cricbuzz, have now reported that no bids made before that date matched internal BCCI expectations and the base price.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
It has been reported that potential bidders have been put off by the base price being the equivalent of $508,000 per match, roughly 15% higher than the per-match figure that is currently being paid by the current title sponsor, IDFC First Bank.
IDFC First Bank has been the BCCI's partner in this capacity since August of 2023, when it replaced credit card heavyweight Mastercard.
The cycle covered by the tender lasts for less than two years, according to reports, up until the end of March 2028.
In its tender documents – which had a deadline for purchasing of August 5 – the BCCI said that period will contain 35 home matches – "chargeable matches."
The first of those home games is set to be a September 27 clash against the West Indies, meaning the BCCI has just over a month in which to resolve the title sponsorship situation.
Brands involved in these discussions reportedly include the likes of Google Gemini, SBI Life, and Indian used-car platform Spinny.
In terms of industry categories that the BCCI is not taking submissions from, on account of already having sponsors within those categories, these include: sportswear merchandise and equipment, as well as athleisure wear and performance wear; tyres, tubes, and flaps; and paints, waterproofing, and wallpapers.
The BCCI will also not be accepting bids from any form of betting, gambling, fantasy sports gaming, or prediction market firm, or from conglomerates that have such brands within their groups.
Bids from any form of cryptocurrency operator are also ineligible, as are submissions from companies involved in "virtual digital assets, [or] Web3/tokenised products or services."
In the cycle just completed with IDFC First Bank, there were 55 home matches.
