 "BCCI to explore mini-IPL this September")
At the maiden Annual Cricket Conclave at Dharamsala, the working committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said it would explore options for holding a mini Indian Premier League (IPL) tournament in September.
Said to have the existing eight teams from the IPL, it is expected to be three weeks long, and might take place in the UAE, a venue that has hosted the annual cash-rich 20-overs tournament earlier.
The governing body for the sport hopes to make up for the cancellation of the Champions League T-20, a tournament that failed to generate interest among fans and advertisers after six editions. It usually took place in the September-October period, around the time this new mini IPL is being proposed.
Having another edition, albeit in a shorter format, will definitely mean more money into the IPL system. Too soon to say how much, as many variable are not known.
“I think BCCI saw an opportunity to take IPL to the global stage and decided to grab it. It’s an established domestic league and this could be a way to take it global. We need to now see whether it will continue with its current media and commercial partners or call for new bidders for media (broadcast and digital) rights and title sponsorship,” says Indranil Das Blah, partner and operations head at CAA KWAN, a sports and celebrity management agency.
Sources close to BCCI say no decision has been taken either way. Currently, Chinese telecom handset maker Vivo has the title sponsorship for the 2016 and 2017 tournaments. It bagged the rights at Rs 200 crore (or Rs 100 crore a year), after global beverage giant Pepsi backed out earlier this year. Pepsi had picked the title sponsorship for the IPL back in 2013 after the BCCI's contract with DLF matured.
Pepsi was paying BCCI an estimated Rs 80 crore a year for the title sponsorship. It remains to be seen if Vivo's contract covers this proposed mini IPL or not.
Similarly, the media rights for IPL are currently divided between Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) and Novi Digital (a subsidiary of STAR India, which houses all the digital assets of the media network). While SPN has the television broadcast rights, competitor Star has the digital telecast rights. Both contracts expire in 2017; from the 2018 edition, a new contract is to be signed.
While Star India pays an estimated Rs 33 crore a year, SPN pays Rs 800-850 crore a year in telecast rights. SPN has made an estimated Rs 1,200 crore in on-air advertising revenues on the IPL this year.
Again, it is not clear whether the television and digital telecast for the September mini-IPL are covered in the existing contracts or not. "As of now, the working committee has ratified the decision to hold a mini-IPL overseas. The rest of the discussion is yet to take place," says an executive close to BCCI, on condition of anonymity.
Vivek Zhang, CMO, Vivo India said, “We haven’t received any formal information on Mini IPL from BCCI. Once we do, we will then evaluate the opportunity to our best interest and will keep you posted.”
Said to have the existing eight teams from the IPL, it is expected to be three weeks long, and might take place in the UAE, a venue that has hosted the annual cash-rich 20-overs tournament earlier.
The governing body for the sport hopes to make up for the cancellation of the Champions League T-20, a tournament that failed to generate interest among fans and advertisers after six editions. It usually took place in the September-October period, around the time this new mini IPL is being proposed.
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As is known, the IPL attracts a lot money every year in various forms. The money riding on the system is Rs 3,500 to 4,000 crore. That includes franchise fees, player acquisition fees, media rights fees, on-ground and on-air sponsorship revenues, stadium advertising revenues, gate fees, team sponsorships and operational costs.
Having another edition, albeit in a shorter format, will definitely mean more money into the IPL system. Too soon to say how much, as many variable are not known.
“I think BCCI saw an opportunity to take IPL to the global stage and decided to grab it. It’s an established domestic league and this could be a way to take it global. We need to now see whether it will continue with its current media and commercial partners or call for new bidders for media (broadcast and digital) rights and title sponsorship,” says Indranil Das Blah, partner and operations head at CAA KWAN, a sports and celebrity management agency.
Sources close to BCCI say no decision has been taken either way. Currently, Chinese telecom handset maker Vivo has the title sponsorship for the 2016 and 2017 tournaments. It bagged the rights at Rs 200 crore (or Rs 100 crore a year), after global beverage giant Pepsi backed out earlier this year. Pepsi had picked the title sponsorship for the IPL back in 2013 after the BCCI's contract with DLF matured.
Pepsi was paying BCCI an estimated Rs 80 crore a year for the title sponsorship. It remains to be seen if Vivo's contract covers this proposed mini IPL or not.
Similarly, the media rights for IPL are currently divided between Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN) and Novi Digital (a subsidiary of STAR India, which houses all the digital assets of the media network). While SPN has the television broadcast rights, competitor Star has the digital telecast rights. Both contracts expire in 2017; from the 2018 edition, a new contract is to be signed.
While Star India pays an estimated Rs 33 crore a year, SPN pays Rs 800-850 crore a year in telecast rights. SPN has made an estimated Rs 1,200 crore in on-air advertising revenues on the IPL this year.
Again, it is not clear whether the television and digital telecast for the September mini-IPL are covered in the existing contracts or not. "As of now, the working committee has ratified the decision to hold a mini-IPL overseas. The rest of the discussion is yet to take place," says an executive close to BCCI, on condition of anonymity.
Vivek Zhang, CMO, Vivo India said, “We haven’t received any formal information on Mini IPL from BCCI. Once we do, we will then evaluate the opportunity to our best interest and will keep you posted.”