Paytm is Umpire partner, 34 Star India brands to sponsor IPL broadcast

Mobile wallet brand is also Title Sponsor of India Cricket; Vivo, Coca Cola and Jio sign on as co-presenting sponsors

The Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL) has added Paytm as an on-ground sponsor as the mobile wallet brand comes on board as the Official Umpire Partner for the next five years (seasons 2018 through 2022). Paytm is also the Title Sponsor of India Cricket.CEAT Tyres will continue its association with the annual tournament as the official time-out partner for the next five years. 

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in January had called for the applicant to three categories of commercial partners - official partner, strategic time-out partner and umpire partner.

Shukla, Chairman of the IPL, said, “Paytm are currently the Title Sponsors of India Cricket and the relationship has now been extended to the IPL. Both Paytm and BCCI share a strong bond and we will continue to provide great value to Paytm.”

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder and CEO of Paytm, said, “We are delighted to be the IPL Umpire Partner for the next five years. Cricket has been a key element in Paytm's brand journey and it has worked brilliantly for our young brand. In addition to IPL, we are also the Title sponsor for India cricket for the last few years. We had a great relationship with the BCCI, and our investment in IPL further reaffirms our commitment to this wonderful sport.”

Star India, the media rights holder of the IPL from 2018 to 2022 also announced that 34 brands in total have signed on as commercial partners for the broadcast (TV and digital) of the tournament. While Vivo, Coca Cola and Jio have signed on as co-presenting sponsors, Polycab, Parle Products, AMFI, Make Amy Trip, Vimal Pan Masala and Asian Paints, and Dream 11 are associate sponsors.

Estimates peg the co-presenting sponsors have forked out around Rs 800 million each for the association while associate sponsors would have paid around Rs 400 million. Sources reveal that Star India has set itself a target of Rs 20 billion for this year’s IPL. Star won the global media rights to the IPL for five years for a bid price of Rs 164.38 billion.

Anil Jayaraj, EVP, and Head of Ad Sales - Star Sports said, “We are delighted with the response for the VIVO IPL 2018 from the brands across sectors. We are happy to announce that the brand tally is now 34. Brands are actively choosing VIVO IPL 2018 as the marketing vehicle to deliver their business ambitions in 2018 as they have a single media property which can appeal to demographics across geographies. All brands that have come in so far have chosen to up their investments significantly over past years – this is because of their belief in the delivery of the combined power of TV as well as digital. These brands will get to leverage the power of multiple screens, multiple languages and broaden their reach and engagement like never before. 2018 VIVO IPL will be an un-missable platform to build brands.”

While a bevy of brands have signed on for IPL’s broadcast on TV and digital, regulars like Airtel, Vodafone and Amazon are still missing from the roster of sponsors.