Airtel wins India corporate sponsorship rights

India's largest telecom company, Bharti Airtel, has won the corporate sponsorship rights for all international series played in India for the next three years. Airtel bid Rs 3.33 ($707,545) crores per match, which covers Tests, ODIs and Twenty20 games, according to a BCCI press release. India will play roughly 50 matches in that period, which puts the total value of the deal at approximately Rs 165 crores ($ 35 million).

"Cricket is a game that the Indian masses and millions of sports lovers in other parts of the world are extremely passionate about," Mohit Beotra, brand and media head at Airtel, said. "We believe that cricket as a sport truly represents the zeal and vigour that today's youth stands for, and are hence looking forward to Airtel's long term association with the game.

"Infact, keeping in mind the affinity of India and South Asia towards both cricket and Bollywood - we have identified these as key areas that Airtel as a brand will continue to associate with, in the future."

Ten companies had submitted bids for the rights, including Idea Cellular, the telecom company from the Birla group, and cell phone makers Karbonn Mobile and MicroMax. The bids were opened at the marketing committee meeting in Mumbai today. It is the first time international cricket in India will have a regular tournament and series sponsor, like England does with nPower or Australia with Vodafone.

In the past the board has awarded the rights to sports agencies, which have then parcelled out sponsorships on a series-by-series basis. The previous period's sponsorship rights were with World Sport Group. This time the Board debarred agencies from bidding for the rights or representing other companies in the bidding process. It also excluded firms that provide audio-video production services of live cricket. The minimum bid price set by the board was Rs 2 crore ($428,815) per match.

Airtel is also the lead sponsor for the Champions League, having paid a reported Rs 170 crore ($36 million) for a five-year period. The company also bid for the rights to sponsor the Indian team earlier this year, but lost out to the Sahara Group.