Vivo set to end IPL association
Chinese firm and BCCI are understood to have agreed to terminate the contract
The Board of Control for
Cricket in India (BCCI) has
been forced into a corner
with IPL title sponsor Vivo
set to end its association
with the T20 league.
Following the border tension with China, Vivo — a
Chinese mobile phone manufacturer — and the BCCI
have been on the verge of invoking force majeure and
mutually agreeing to end the
fiveseason contract after
just two editions.
Conference call
The Hindu understands that
BCCI president Sourav Ganguly and secretary Jay Shah
had a conference call with
Vivo representatives, with
IPL chairman Brijesh Patel
in attendance, on Tuesday.
Both parties are understood to have agreed to amicably terminate the
agreement.
The BCCI had refrained
from revisiting the IPL sponsorship deal during Sunday’s governing council
meeting.
This was followed by a public outcry over the league’s
association with a Chinese
company. However, a BCCI
insider claimed that Tuesday’s meeting was a fallout
of Vivo’s demand to renegotiate the deal.
“They had reached out to
the president and the secretary a while ago and sought
a revision of the deal, citing
prevailing market conditions and public sentiment.
“Since they were demanding a substantial reduction in sponsorship for
the 2020 edition, it was mutually decided to look at options,” said the BCCI insider.
It is learnt that Vivo wanted “at least 30% reduction”
in the amount for the forthcoming edition, to be played
in the UAE from September
19 to November 10.
In 2018, Vivo signed a fiveedition deal worth ₹2,199
crore (approximately ₹440
crore per year) as title
sponsor.
If force majeure is invoked, it could absolve both
parties from compensating
the other for the premature
termination of the deal.
While no one from the
BCCI was available for an official comment, a Vivo India
spokesperson said the company is “not commenting on
the matter yet”.
Fresh tender for 2020?
A formal announcement on
the separation is expected
“very soon” so that the BCCI
can invite fresh bids “only
for the 2020 edition”.
It is understood that a business conglomerate with
close ties to an IPL franchise
may explore extending its
association with the IPL.
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