BCCI ropes in Vivo Mobile as title sponsor for IPL for two years

The Chinese mobile firm beat three other bidders to emerge as the title sponsor for the cricket tournament. The deal is for the 2016 and 2017 seasons of IPL

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Mumbai | October 27, 2015

With Pepsi deciding to pull out as title sponsors for the Indian Premier League (IPL), Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has roped in unheralded Chinese mobile phone manufacturer Vivo Mobile India as the new title sponsor for IPL for two seasons (2016 and 2017). BCCI Secretary Anurag Thakur and Vivo Mobile India CEO Alex Feng together unveiled the new IPL poster. While both parties refused to comment on the sponsorship deal amount, reports suggest that the two-year deal is worth Rs 200 crore.

Vivo and IPL will have extensive cooperation in terms of sports events, on-ground activations, media exposure and marketing campaigns. Cricket fans across India and around the world will enjoy IPL brought by BCCI and Vivo.

Speaking on the occasion, Anurag Thakur said, “We welcome Vivo Mobile India on board to the Indian Premier League. IPL is all about opportunities and exhibition of talent and with Vivo coming in as the title sponsor, it is yet another initiative to showcase a brand which is young, full of life and looking for a platform to showcase its talent. Just like the IPL, Vivo in a very short span has created a niche and legacy in the smartphone market, and I am sure this will be a long and enriching affiliation for both the stakeholders.”

Alex Feng, CEO, Vivo Mobile India, remarked, “Vivo's spirit is to pursue excellence and create surprises. IPL is also creating the ultimate sports experience. It is this shared commitment to excellence that brought IPL and Vivo together. Vivo is an emerging brand in India, dedicated to offering quality products and services to music lovers, sports enthusiasts and fashion pursuers. We always believe in supporting new talents and associated ourselves only with premium events globally. This investment reiterates how important the Indian market is for us, and we are confident that Vivo will get returns from our investment in IPL.”

“During the past two years, we've been focussing on building our sales and services network. In the past 10 months, we already have 10,000 outlets, and we/re hoping to build on more that would create 2,000 jobs with a maximum production capacity of one million units,” added Feng.

Speaking to BestMediaInfo.com, Feng said, “We had approached BCCI and Pepsi. They recognised the progress we've made so far, so we'd like to thank both BCCI and Pepsi for giving us this opportunity. We see this as a tri-party victory.”

IPL's image has taken a beating following allegations of spot-fixing, which has resulted in two-year suspensions of two IPL teams – Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings. While Thakur acknowledged the fact that the IPL's brand image did take a hit, he added that the reforms undertaken by the new regime to clean up the sport had restored the confidence of sponsors. He further said that in addition to Vivo Mobile, there were three other bidders in the fray for the title sponsorship bid, but refused to divulge their names.

Feng said that despite the controversies surrounding IPL, it wasn't a tough decision to invest in it. “We did an extensive research and had in depth discussion about sponsorship association, but cricket is so popular and an irreplaceable sport in India, so considering the brand value and the commercial value that it brings to Vivo, we think we've made the right decision, and one that we didn't take long to decide,” Feng concluded.

Info@BestMediaInfo.com

Info@BestMediaInfo.com