Pad up, there's a brand new deal street in town

At least half a dozen endorsement, investment and collaboration deals have been signed by various cricketers amid rising viewership numbers for the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) over the last two-three weeks, executives said. A similar number of pacts are in the process of being finalised, they said.

Chennai Super Kings star player MS Dhoni has been signed by nutrition startup Explosive Whey, in which he’ll also be investing, French carmaker Citroen and Emcure Pharmaceuticals. Appliances maker Philips has collaborated with Virat Kohli for a limited-edition, co-designed beard trimmer. Wearables brand boAt has signed Yashasvi Jaiswal. Shikhar Dhawan has been signed by eyewear start-up QUE as investor and ambassador.

Dhoni said the partnership with supplements maker Explosive Whey was “a natural fit” for him. French car maker Citroen, a Stellantis Group brand, is learnt to have signed him for a two-year, ₹7-crore deal. The deal, according to executives, is aimed at improving brand awareness and market share since it’s a relatively new entrant.

‘₹3-5cr a Year for Top Names’
Kohli, who has 63 million followers on X, posted: “Presenting my first collaboration where I co-designed the limited-edition Philips beard trimmer.”Deals are being signed by established cricketers and newer entrants with brands looking to leverage the tournament for visibility as well as cutting through the clutter.”For the bigger names like Virat, these new deals would spill over with the upcoming ICC (World Cup) tournament, which starts next month in the US,” said Sandeep Goyal, chairman of ad agency Rediffusion. “As far as the younger names go, these will be short-term gains.”

A senior executive at a talent management company pegged the endorsement deals at Rs 3-5 crore a year for top names such as Kohli or Dhoni and Rs 75 lakh-Rs 1 crore for upcoming players.

Last fortnight, Aman Gupta, cofounder and chief marketing officer of boAt, announced Jaiswal as a new ‘boAthead’ in a video featuring both of them. The young Rajasthan Royals player was seen as a fit for his “ambition, relentless hard work and constant pursuit of excellence”, Gupta said.

IPL television broadcasting rights holder Disney Star said May 9 that viewership reached 510 million in the first 51 matches of the tournament, citing data from the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC). That’s 5% up from 2019 for the same number of matches (like-to-like comparison) and an 18% increase from IPL 2023 in terms of total watch time so far, Star said.

Punjab Kings player Dhawan, currently injured, will collaborate with QUE to make sunglasses “accessible to mass premium consumers”, according to the company. Shashank Saurabh, cofounder of QUE, said the partnership with Dhawan would “redefine the sunglasses industry, which is expected to touch $8.6 billion by 2028”.

In addition to new deals, some brands have released new campaigns with players they have been associated with. Eyewear maker Oakley has launched one with Rohit Sharma of the Mumbai Indians. Air conditioner maker Blue Star has released new ads with Kohli.