Sports sponsorship grows 19%, accounts for 11.5% of adex

Cricket still leads, but others are bridging the gap at a super-fast pace

Despite demonetisation, trouble at the Board for Cricket Control of India (BCCI), uncertainty over new franchises at the Indian Premier League (IPL) and teething problems with the new football and tennis leagues, sports sponsorships saw a massive 19 per cent bump in 2016 to touch Rs 6,400 crore. While cricket (in all forms) was the top performer, kabaddi saw a big surge in 2016 by bringing in three times the amount it did in sponsorships in 2015. The fourth edition of Sporting Nation in the making (ESP Properties, GroupM and SportzPower) released on Thursday shows that while cricket continues to