Whalesbook
Ye jo sponsorship mein itna paisa aa raha hai na, uska reason ye hai ki brands ab sirf apne logo ko dikhane se aage badh gaye hain. Woh ab IPL teams ke saath deep integration kar rahe hain, ek tarah ka 'brand ecosystem' bana rahe hain. Ye jo partnership hai na, ab woh sirf ek-ek season ki nahi, balki lambi terms wali ho gayi hain. Suno, Delhi Capitals ke CEO, Sunil Gupta ne bhi bola hai ki brands ab "strategic, long-term partnerships" chahte hain, na ki sirf visibility wali deals.
Aur jo sabse top assets hain, jaise jersey ke samne wali jagah, woh bhi 15-20% saal-dar-saal mahangi ho rahi hain. Ab sirf traditional sectors hi nahi, BFSI, consumer tech, aur renewable energy jaise naye sectors bhi IPL mein dilchaspi dikha rahe hain. Ye sab milakar, IPL teams ki sponsorships ne 2025 mein ₹1,000 Crore ka figure cross kar liya hai, poora ₹1,033 Crore! Punjab Kings toh 30% tak ka growth dekh rahi hai, unke naye partners mein CP Plus, Nippon Paints, Zelio E-Bikes jaise naam hain. Gujarat Titans ke paas 37 brand partners hain aur Mumbai Indians ne bhi 20% growth ke saath 30 se zyada associations kiye hain.
Ye sab ho raha hai jab Indian advertising market bhi zordar chal raha hai. WPP Media ka kehna hai ki 2026 tak ye market 9.7% badh kar ₹2,01,891 Crore ho jayega, jisme digital ka share 68.1% hoga. Sports economy bhi $2 billion tak pahunch gayi hai India mein, aur iska 85% hissa toh cricket ka hi hai, aur IPL toh iska king hai.
Teams ki value bhi ekdum se badh gayi hai! Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) aur Rajasthan Royals jaise teams ki deal $1.6 billion se upar gayi hai. Investors ka interest bhi badh raha hai, especially global PE funds.
Lekin bhai, sab kuch itna hi smooth nahi hai. Cricket par itna jyada depend karna ek risk hai. Agar viewership kam ho gayi ya media rights ki value giri, toh sab affect ho sakta hai. Plus, agar economy slow ho gayi ya koi naya regulation aa gaya (jaise Real Money Gaming par ban hua tha), toh bhi problem ho sakti hai. Aur ek cheez, teams ki valuation jo abhi 20x revenue ke aas paas hai, woh NBA ya NFL se kaafi zyada hai, jiska matlab hai ki future growth ka pressure bahut hai.
Phir bhi, experts ka manna hai ki IPL sponsorships mein double-digit growth aage bhi dikhta rahega. Ye brand ecosystem wala shift aur India ka badhta ad market isko support karega. Investors bhi khush hain aur aage media rights ka cycle aur bada hone wala hai.