The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has established a base price of Rs 1750 crore per year for the title sponsorship rights of the Indian Premier League (IPL), covering 74 matches across five years. Additionally, bids for 84 and 94 matches have been proposed at base prices of Rs 375 crore and Rs 400 crore, respectively. However, the ultimate decision will hinge on the cumulative value assigned to the 74 matches.
On December 12, the IPL Governing Council issued an invitation for bids to secure title sponsorship rights for the 2024-2028 seasons. Interested parties must acquire the ITT to submit a bid, meeting eligibility criteria specified in the ITT. Purchasing the ITT alone does not grant bidding rights, as clarified in the tender invitation note.
Annexure B of the bid invitation outlines prohibited brand categories, including alcohol products, betting, cryptocurrency, real money gaming (excluding fantasy sports gaming), tobacco, and those likely to offend public morals, such as pornography.
The invitation also emphasizes that the highest bid will be subject to Tata Sons Private Limited’s exercise of its ‘Right to Match’ such bid (“RTM”).
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As per the prior title sponsor agreement between BCCI and Tata Sons Private Limited (“Tata”), BCCI is obligated to inform Tata of the highest bid amount received for the Title Sponsorship Rights through the ITT process. Subsequently, Tata holds the right (though not an obligation) to match the highest bid within five working days from the date of opening the financial bids and must communicate its intention to BCCI. If Tata exercises this right, BCCI is then obliged to award the title sponsorship rights for the specified period to Tata.
BCCI retains the authority to cancel or modify the bidding process at any stage and in any manner, with no requirement to provide a reason for such actions.
