BCCI hunts for new IPL title sponsor

VIVO has three years left in its contract, which it will honour in 2021, 2022 and 2023 instead. Chinese mobile phone maker VIVO is IPL’s title sponsor and pays the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Rs 440 crore annually for the fiveyear deal, which it bagged in 2017 by bidding a whopping Rs 2,199 crores.

In the next three days, Sourav Gangulyled BCCI is going to float a tender for the new sponsorship. The IPL governing council and BCCI faced backlash on Monday after they decided to retain the Chinese mobile company as title sponsor of IPL 2020.

Swadeshi Jagran Manch (SJM), the Economic wing of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), had even stated that it would be forced to give a call to boycott the T20 tournament if IPL goes ahead with its decision to keep VIVO on board.

“We urge the Government of India to warn the IPL GC. If it doesn’t comply, then the Government should withdraw recognition to the tournament,” said a spokesman of SJM. He said that the government is doing what it can to restrict Chinese entities in India, but added that people and institutions too must share the responsibility.

Other companies involved in IPL Paytm, Swiggy, Dream 11 -- have Chinese investments. Not just the league, the franchises too attract Chinese sponsorship.