Paytm owner One97 Communications to sponsor IPL instead of PepsiCo?

According to Hindustan Times, One97 Communications which owns Paytm is close to signing a deal with the BCCI, to replace outgoing IPL sponsor PepsiCo. A final decision on the same is likely by the end of October.

One97 has already had discussions with the board, but the price is proving to be a tricky issue, says HT. PepsiCo paid around Rs.396 crore in 2012 for title sponsorship of the IPL for a five-year period of 2013 and 2017. It has to pay about Rs 160 crore for 2016 and 2017. HT says that according to BCCI, the new sponsor will have to pay Rs 160 crore plus 10%. 

Related Read: Why PepsiCo is unwilling to be the title sponsor of IPL

One97’s founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma averted a direct answer while speaking to HT. "Cricket is this country’s religion. Teams can come and go, but I don’t think cricket will ever go out of this country’s bloodstream". 

One97 recently agreed to pay Rs 203 crore to become the title sponsor for four years for all Team India games – 84 Tests, ODIs, and T20s. Thus, the sum comes to Rs 2.42 crore per match. The proposed IPL sponsorship is a separate deal, says Hindustan Times.

But the amount BCCI is demanding from One97 is daunting given that two of IPL's most popular and money-minting teams, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) will not feature in the next edition due to the betting and spot-fixing scandal.

However, BCCI has given assurances to all concerned that two new teams will step in this year, keeping the number of matches the same as last year. Cricket sponsorship deals are mostly calculated on the basis of the number of matches. A source told HT that the two new teams would have the same players as CSK and RR did.