The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Saturday announced that Dream11, a fantasy sports platform, has been appointed as the lead sponsor of the Indian cricket team. Dream11 takes over the sponsorship from edtech firm Byju’s, whose contract expired in March.
The agreement between the gaming platform and the world’s wealthiest cricket board is set for a duration of three years. Dream11 will be featured on Team India jerseys starting from the upcoming Test series against the West Indies, the BCCI added.
According to media reports, the company secured the rights in a deal worth Rs 358 crore, significantly lower than the amount paid by Byju’s. The edtech giant was paying Rs 5.5 crore for each bilateral match, while the value decreased to Rs 1.7 crore for an ICC game due to logo positioning, Byju’s had agreed to a total payment of $55 million (~Rs 440 crore).
For context, Dream11 has been the official partner of the Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament since 2019 and was the title sponsor for the IPL 2020. Additionally, it served as an official partner for the inaugural edition of the Women’s Premier League in 2023.
Last month, the BCCI invited tenders for the lead sponsorship position after Byju’s expressed that it wants to terminate its agreement with the cricket board.
Byju’s had become the lead sponsor in 2019, taking over from Chinese smartphone maker Oppo. However, in November 2022, Byju’s decided to end the association as a cost-cutting measure and later extended its contract until March 2023.
In its tender, the BCCI excluded certain brand categories from participating in the process, such as real-money gaming companies, athleisure and sportswear manufacturers, alcohol products, betting, cryptocurrency, and tobacco brands. However, an exception was made for fantasy sports gaming companies.
