Hyderabad, NFAPost: The 13th edition of the cash-rich Indian Premier League got a new title sponsor when fantasy gaming platform Dream11 won the title sponsorship rights with a bid of Rs 222 crore.
Dream11 replaced Chinese mobile phone company Vivo for a four and a half month deal. Vivo had earlier pulled out due to the escalating political tensions between India and China along with its sliding economic condition, which had put its commitment in cold water.
Incidentally, Dream11 has been one of the IPL sponsors for a couple of years now. “Dream11 has won the rights with a bid of Rs 222 crore,” Indian Premier League chairman Brijesh Patel told news agencies.
Bidding competition
Dream11 pipped a bid from Byjus, the Tata group and Unacademy. As per reports, the Tata group didn’t face a final bid while Dream11 outsmarted bids from BYJUs (201 crore) and Unacademy (171 crore).
Incidentally, Dream11 is paying less than half of what Vivo were paying on a yearly basis after winning the rights for five seasons in 2018 for Rs 2,190 crore which approximately works out to Rs 440 crore per year.
The IPL will be played United Arab Emirates – Dubai, Sharjah and Abu Dhabi – from September 19 to November 10 after the coronavirus pandemic threw all schedules and normal life awry.
Bio-secure cricketing bubbles have been created and players have to follow a set of instructions to the cue during the course of the tournament. The players will also undergo regular coronavirus tests. Most of teams have started a pre-season camp and will fly to the UAE after August 20.
