Industry Odisha Bureau, Sep 25: Muthoot FinCorp becomes BCCI’s title sponsor in a deal worth up to Rs 150 crore. Its per-match price beats the previous rate but misses the board’s target.
BCCI Finds Its New Title Partner
Muthoot FinCorp will pay up to Rs 4.3 crore for each Team India match. The BCCI had wanted Rs 4.85 crore per match. That target covered 35 matches in the current cycle.
The title sponsorship spans international cricket matches organised by the board until March 2028. Sources value the BCCI sponsorship deal at up to Rs 150 crore. Both figures are ceilings rather than guaranteed sums.
New Rate Edges Past IDFC First
The previous BCCI title sponsor offers a useful benchmark. IDFC First paid Rs 4.2 crore per match. It secured the rights in 2023 through a three-year agreement. That deal was worth Rs 235.2 crore and ended in August.
Its cycle, however, covered 56 matches. The current cycle covers 35. Headline contract values therefore reflect different match counts. On a per-match basis, Muthoot FinCorp’s offer sits slightly higher.
Tender Gives Way to Direct Agreement
The route to the deal was not straightforward. The BCCI floated its title sponsorship tender on July 20. Bids were originally due by August 13. The board later extended that deadline to September 7.
One source said the tender failed to produce a partner. The BCCI then struck a direct agreement with Muthoot FinCorp, the source added.
A sports marketing official called the deal proof of a resilient cricket sponsorship market. The official also said the board had fallen short of its ambition.
BCCI Expands Its Sponsorship Portfolio
The title agreement follows fresh associate partnerships for bilateral cricket. Campa, SBI Life and ChatGPT joined as associate partners for Team India. Their three deals are worth over Rs 130 crore combined. That is 44% higher than the previous cycle.
Campa Cola led the bidding at Rs 1.31 crore per match. ChatGPT and SBI Life each bid Rs 1.2 crore. Bisleri and Indian Oil Corporation matched that Rs 1.2 crore figure. Neither, however, is among the three new partners.
The board had raised the associate reserve price to Rs 95 lakh from Rs 82 lakh. That reserve applies to associate rights, not title sponsorship.
Cricket Retains Sponsorship Dominance
The wider market remains supportive. India’s sports sponsorship spending reached Rs 7,942 crore in 2025, WPP Media’s Sporting Nation report says. That marked 7% year-on-year growth. Cricket’s share of sponsorship rose to 89% from 85%.
Strong brands continue backing cricket despite fintech and fantasy sports exits. Other BCCI deals include Apollo Tyres’ Rs 579 crore front-of-jersey agreement. Asian Paints holds a separate Rs 145 crore deal.
Between Two Benchmarks
The Muthoot FinCorp deal sits between two reference points. It edges past IDFC First’s Rs 4.2 crore per-match payment. Yet it stays below the BCCI’s Rs 4.85 crore ambition. That gap defines the latest test of Team India’s commercial value.
