Highlights:
- Vivo to pull out as Title sponsor for IPL 2020
- The official statement would be made by Thursday by the BCCI
- New bids for the sponsorship of IPL will be opened in this week
The Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo is going to pull out as the title sponsor for the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League and is currently in talks with the Indian cricket board, Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), for an “amicable separation” amid the rising Sino-India diplomatic tensions.
It is being said that the official announcement would come out by Thursday however, the sources from the Board of Control for Cricket in India has confirmed that Vivo will no longer be the title sponsor of IPL 2020.
In this week, the Indian cricket board will also call for new bids for the title sponsorship of IPL 2020. It is learnt that BCCI officials are expected to meet today itself.
In the last meeting of BCCI, the cricket board and the IPL Governing Council did not take a call on Vivo being the title sponsor. This led to protests and calls for boycott of the Indian Premier League by several right0wing outfits.
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It is being said that it will be a one-year pullout, which will be treated as a moratorium period, and if the relations improve, however, BCCI could look at inking a fresh three-year deal with the company from 2021 to 2023 on revised terms.
The IPL will be held in the UAE from September 19 to November 10 this year.
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A source said, “There is a lot of negative sentiments against the Chinese companies and it is likely to grow, hence it is felt by both the sponsor as well as BCCI it will be better to take a break and wait for the situation to improve,”.
A report by a leading news agency said, “Chinese sponsorship became a bone of contention after the BCCI declared it would review the deals following the violent clashes between the armies of both the countries in eastern Ladakh.”
The report added that, “The clash, which led to the killing of 20 Indian soldiers, triggered public outrage and led to calls of boycotting Chinese companies and products.”
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Every year Vivo shells out around Rs 440 crore as per the 5 year deal for the IPL title sponsorship which was supposed to end in 2022.
It is understood that whenever any decision will be taken, it will be amicable and the Board of Control for Cricket in India is not looking at encashing the bank guarantee.
