The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has struck an eleventh-hour title sponsorship deal covering its home national team fixtures with Indian financial institution Muthoot, it has been reported.
Through a deal first reported by media yesterday, Muthoot will act as title sponsor for premier national team cricket taking place in India over the next two home seasons – running through March 2028.
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This deal has been struck with the first Indian men's home series of the new cycle, against the West Indies, beginning on September 27.
The Cricbuzz publication has reported that Muthoot, based in the Indian state of Kerala, will be paying a per-match title sponsorship fee equivalent to just over $500,000. The previous title partner, IDFC First Bank, was paying the equivalent of $438,000 per game, in contrast.
The original process through which the BCCI has been searching for a new title partner for its premier home events began in late July, with the Indian cricket body initially setting a submission deadline of August 13.
The BCCI made it clear that it would 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 were also ineligible.
However, no bids made by that first deadline matched the base price that the BCCI had set, it emerged late last month.
In total, this new deal is expected to cover 35 home internationals over the next 18 months.
In terms of other recent BCCI commercial activity, earlier this month, a trio of associate sponsors were unveiled – Indian beverage brand Campa, life insurance firm SBI Life, and popular AI-based product ChatGPT.
IDFC First Bank was brought in as the BCCI's main title sponsor in August of 2023, when it replaced credit card heavyweight Mastercard.
Elsewhere in the body's sponsorship portfolio, Apollo Tyres is the main sponsor for the Team India umbrella national team organization (having assumed that position last September), while Adidas is the body's kit supply partner.
Cricket in India – national team fixtures, and the glamorous Indian Premier League franchise tournament – brings in by far and away the highest commercial fees out of any market that sport is played in.
As such, the BCCI has previously been used to being able to command substantial fees from brands looking to be associated with the sport in that market.
