Paytm has reportedly chosen to end the sponsorship deal with Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) a year early. A new sponsor is in the wings, and a deal could be signed within days.
Representative Image (Reuters)
The title sponsorship of Team India’s cricket matches both at home and abroad will soon have a new name. Unconfirmed news reports are suggesting that Paytm has chosen to log out of the sponsorship deal with Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) a year early, and Mastercard is all set to take on the mantle.
According to a report in The Economic Times, BCCI has accepted Paytm’s plea for the re-assignment of its title sponsorship, valid until 2023, to Mastercard. The fintech unicorn had initially signed up to be associated with the BCCI for a period of seven years.
Sources privy to the matter told The Economic Times, “Paytm had asked to pull out of the deal and Mastercard was willing to come in at the same price,” The report also disclosed that BCCI has accepted the proposal and the contracts are being drawn up, likely to be signed in ‘another 5-10 days’.
Mastercard has acknowledged that the company is aware of reports about its participation in a leading cricket sponsorship. However, the financial services company added that it couldn’t comment on any speculation.
In August 2019, Paytm had renewed the title sponsorship deal with BCCI for four years with a winning bid of Rs 326.80 crore or Rs 3.80 crore per match.
Paytm first signed the title sponsorship deal with BCCI in 2015 for Rs 203 crore for four years, or Rs 2.40 crore per match, and the new deal was valued 58% higher.
Paytm is backing out of the pre-agreed sponsorship deal at a time when several consumer tech startups are facing pressure over valuations. Earlier this month, a PwC report stated that startup funding has declined 40% in the period between April and June.
In a separate development, Byju’s, the jersey sponsor for the Indian cricket team had to issue a clarification regarding news reports which suggested it owed BCCI over Rs 86 crore in unpaid debts. Co-founder Divya Gokulnath strongly denied this a LinkedIn post.
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“Mastercard will be assigned the rights till 2023–the original terms of the Paytm deal. They will continue to pay Rs 3.8 crore, while Paytm will have to pay 5% of the original deal value as re-assignment fee,” The Economic Times reported.
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