ITV

Category: Sports

  • Star India snaps up broadcast rights to Sachin-Warne’s Cricket All-Stars

    Star India snaps up broadcast rights to Sachin-Warne’s Cricket All-Stars

    MUMBAI: Star India has snapped up the broadcast rights of the much awaited venture of Sachin Tendulkar and Shane Warne namely The Cricket All-Stars T20 tournament, featuring cricket legends from across the globe.

     

    Confirming the development to Indiantelevision.com a source close to the development said, “The rights are with Star and we all are looking forward to the tournament.”

     

    While Master Card has been roped in as the title sponsor of the tournament, negotiations are on with a few more brand. The source adds, “We are in the last phase of proceedings and will soon reveal many more developments.”

     

    The Cricket All-Stars T20 tournament is set to unfold on 7 November, 2015 in New York. The tourney will then move to Houston on 11 November and to Los Angeles on 14 November.

     

    Virender Sehwag, who recently retired, has also joined the roster, which has former Indian greats like Sourav Ganguly, VVS Laxman and Ajit Agarkar. While Warne confirmed his participation in the tournament a few days back, the master blaster Tendulkar was also spotted sweating it out in the nets yet again. Some of the others former cricketers who are a part of the league are Kumar Sangakkara, Jonthy Rhodes, Wasim Akram, Glen Mcgrath and Ricky Ponting.

     

    His recent tweets read : 

     

    Had fun at the nets today. #ComingToAmerica, see you in New York in 10 days.. #CricketAllStars2015 @T20AllStars

     

     

    Welcoming Sehwag and beginning the countdown, Telndulkar tweeted: Welcome my friend and a batsman with distinct style …………………. #10daystogo

     

     

    Senior cricket expert Hemant Kenkre said, “It’s a delightful opportunity for the average American cricket fans to see the legends playing in front of them. The initiative is nice. I remember something similar was done in Brabourne Stadium long back. From cricket’s perspective, it remains to be seen how fit the players are, it’s been long since many of them retired and no one knows how much cricket they have been playing. But overall Wasim Akram bowling to Lara or Sachin facing Warne again would be a worthy sight for cricket lovers.”

     

    A sports media planning veteran added, “Sachin, Sourav, Sehwag, Warne in one pitch again can take viewership to a different level, recently we saw in Wankhede how the entire stadium was chanting Sachinnnnn! Sachinnnnnn! Having said that, the matches are to be played in America so the timing will be an issue for the Indian audience. Moreover, how competitive the matches are, will be another factor to look at. Overall the first three matches will be an experiment and the quality of those will determine the future.”

     

  • Vivo furthers Indian localisation strategy with IPL; plans major marketing push

    Vivo furthers Indian localisation strategy with IPL; plans major marketing push

    MUMBAI: With an aim to expand its Indian localisation strategy as well as furthering its interest and association in sporting events, Chinese multinational manufacturer of smartphones Vivo has set sight on the Indian market field in a big way.

     

    As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, Vivo hit a six by grabbing the title sponsorship for the multi-million dollar cricket tourney – The Indian Premiere League (IPL) for a period of two years. The move came in the wake of Pepsi withdrawing its title sponsorship deal.

     

    This is Vivo’s first and so far the largest brand association since its launch in the Indian market. With 2015 being Vivo’s 20th anniversary and the first anniversary in India, the company sees Vivo-IPL making the throttle of its development even stronger.

     

    In the coming two seasons (2016 and 2017), Vivo and IPL will have extensive cooperation in terms of sports events, on-ground activations, media exposure and marketing campaigns.

     

    As a brand, Vivo has shown great interest in sports and had sponsored NBA’s live broadcasting in China last year. With an aim to enhance its brand awareness and reputation as well as get closer to its potential customers in the vast Indian market, Vivo will be utilising the IPL medium to the hilt over the next two years with a major marketing push. The Chinese company plans to launch 360 degree marketing campaigns, which will include athlete endorsements, television commercials (TVCs), venue advertisements, on-ground activation, digital and social media campaigns and fan meetings amongst others.

     

    Vivo Mobile India CEO Alex Feng said, “We always believe in supporting new talents and associated ourselves only with premium events globally. This investment reiterates how important Indian market is for us, and we are confident that Vivo will get returns from our investment in IPL, and this association will further advance our Love India, Love Vivo initiative.” 

     

    “Vivo is the pioneer of Hi-Fi music smartphone, and we strive to create smartphones combined with artistic design and technological innovation. Vivo’s spirit is to pursue excellence and create surprises. IPL, as the world’s premium cricket event, is also creating the ultimate sports experience to the world. It is this shared commitment to excellence that brought IPL and Vivo together,” he added.

     

    BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said, “IPL is all about opportunities and exhibition of talent and with Vivo coming in as the title sponsor, it is yet another initiative to showcase a brand, which is young, full of life and looking for a platform to showcase its talent. Just like the IPL, Vivo in a very short span have created a niche and legacy in the smartphone market and I am sure this will be a long and enriching affiliation for both the stakeholders.”

     

    Speculations were rife that in the light of the match fixing controversy, which led to Pepsi pulling out of the IPL title sponsorship, the sponsorship rates might drop. However, Thakur informed that the IPL was still a coveted property in the eyes of many a brands. Thakur says that Vivo was not the only brand, which had bid for the IPL title sponsorship and that there were four brands, which were interested in coming on board as the title sponsor for the IPL and another three (apart from Vivo) were still interested in coming on board via different associations.. 

     

    Starting from 2014, Vivo initiated its global expansion including India. The company’s association with IPL is a strong sign of its ambition of the long term development in India. Moreover, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative also resonates with Vivo’s plan. Its assembly unit in Greater Noida is the first step toward this commitment. With Rs 125 crore first-phase investment, this unit will be operational in November, 2015.

     

    The company employs 8,000 people in India and has associated with over 10,000 retailers, in over 300 cities in 22 states, with a strong focus on Hi-Fi Music. The company embedded Hi-Fi & Smart into its brand and product genes. It created the world’s first Hi-Fi smartphone, established smartphone Hi-Fi standard and upgraded it to Hi-Fi 2.0.

  • Sanjay Dutt buys franchise in Masters Champions League for ex-cricketers

    Sanjay Dutt buys franchise in Masters Champions League for ex-cricketers

    NEW DELHI: Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt and his wife Manyata Dutt have acquired a team in the upcoming Masters Champions League (MCL). 

     

    The couple are said to be excited to be associated with MCL and are looking forward to take their love for cricket ahead.

     

    Masters Champions League, a T20 tournament for retired cricket players comprises of six teams. Legendary players such as Virendra Sehwag, Wasim Akram, Brian Lara, Jacques Kallis, and Dean Jones will be seen competing against each other.

     

    The tournament will be held in the United Arab Emirates in 2016.

     

    With the launch of the official anthem composed by Sajid-Wajid, this cricket tournament has been one of the most anticipated play-offs so far.

     

    The championship has been conceived by GM Sports chairman Zafar Shah. GM Sports is a wholly owned by the Grand Midwest Sports Group operating under the umbrella of the Grand Midwest Group.

     

    It started out with a local cricket club, GMW Royals, providing a platform for skilled cricketers to showcase their on field talents. By bringing current international cricketers into the region to play for their team on a regular basis, GM Sports has helped improve the quality of the domestic leagues and tournaments that GMW Royals participates in. It has since expanded into women’s football, supporting the local DWFA league by acquiring the rights to a team known as GMW Royals. GM Sports also has the naming rights forth Sharjah Cricket Academy. Throughout all of this, GM Sports has remained in the limelight by promoting sports activities in both the local and international communities.

  • WWE to launch video streaming service in Indian subcontinent

    WWE to launch video streaming service in Indian subcontinent

    MUMBAI: The wrestling space in India is sure heating up as players are moving from their gorilla position towards the ring! Close on the heels of TNA announcing its plans to launch live wrestling events in Mumbai in December, comes the news that WWE will be unveiling its direct-to-consumer subscription based video streaming service WWE Network in the Indian subcontinent including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

     

    The sport of wrestling has been gaining prominence on Indian television lately. With wrestling action being a major ratings draw for Ten Sports, last year the sportscaster extended its rights with WWE for a period of five years. Not long after,Sony Six signed a long-term telecast deal with TNA wrestling, which runs through 2022. Now with WWE Network set to launch in India on 2 November, both parties are prepping up their A-Show.

     

    The WWE subscription service will be priced at $9.99 per month. It was launched in the US only last year and features premium live content as well as pay-per-view and VOD (video-on-demand) content.

     

    WWE fans in India can sign up online by going to WWENetwork.com and can watch WWE Network on their desktop, laptop and mobile devices.

     

    Subscribers will receive the first month of service free and have access to the US English language version of WWE Network. Subscribers will get access to 24/7 scheduled programming and VOD library with more than 3,700 hours of content, including Raw and SmackDown re-airs, and every WWE, WCW and ECW pay-per-view.

     

    In addition, all 12 WWE pay-per-views will be available to subscribers 24 hours after they air in India, and will be broadcast live on WWE Network beginning in 2017.

     

    “India is a strategically important market for WWE and we are thrilled to make WWE Network available to our fans there. The global expansion of WWE Network is a key driver in our commitment to growing the WWE brand internationally,” said WWE chief strategy and financial officer George Barrios.

     

    WWE Network will be made available on additional devices, including Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Sony PlayStation 3, Sony PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Roku and Smart TVs prior to Survivor Series on 22 November.

     

    WWE Network programming highlights include Breaking Ground, Swerved, The Monday Night War, Stone Cold Podcast Live!, NXT Takeover Live!, WWE 24 andTotal Divas (seasons 1-3).

  • US sports market to grow at 4% to touch $73.5 billion in 2019: PwC

    US sports market to grow at 4% to touch $73.5 billion in 2019: PwC

    MUMBAI: Even as India’s sports industry is on a growth path with broadcasters like Star India, Multi Screen Media and others promoting games like kabbadi, football, wrestling et al, the sports industry in North America has been one of the biggest revenue generators as a business. With North America’s sports market revenue crossing $60 billion in 2015, everyone from broadcasters, sports agencies and sponsors want a slice of the pie.

    So, what does the future hold for the sports industry in North America? How much more value will sports create? And will demand meet a sufficient supply? Let’s have a look. 

    According to a PricewaterhouseCooper (PwC) report titled ‘At the Gate and Beyond: An Outlook for sports Market in North America through 2019,’ the sports market in North America will grow at a compound annual rate of four per cent across four segments analysed, from $60.5 billion in 2014 to touch $73.5 billion in 2019. 

    This year’s edition of report revitalises five-year revenue forecasts through 2019 with four key segment of the North American sports market namely gate revenues, media rights, sponsorship, and merchandising.   

    Gate revenues are primary market ticket sales for live sports events. The adoption of dynamic pricing for single game tickets has changed. With an increase on media rights revenue over gate revenue, it will make selling broadcast rights more important than selling tickets for the live events and making media rights the biggest contributor to gross sports revenue. 

    Local TV rights in Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Federation (NBA) and National Hockey League (NHL) will likely contribute to the overall sector growth with more than 35 per cent of current deals set to expire over the next five years, albeit on a smaller scale than the national rights deals entered by the major pro leagues, athletic conferences and other sanctioning bodies that are predominately driving industry-wide growth. 

    As far as gate revenues are concerned, leagues will have to find ways to bring in the crowds to stadiums. To maintain gate revenues, leagues are coming up with different innovations like rewards, fan (loyalty) rewards program and point systems. And in areas where past generations of rewards programs failed, new innovations will allow clubs to more efficiently track fan activities, understand fan preferences, and disseminate benefits to fans. 

    There will be many hurdles for sports leagues in terms of media ratings, as the popularity of live sports is in demand. There would be an increase in budgets of various sports cable networks for live programming for the viewers, battle over subscriber fees and bidding wars over desirable content. The rise in the compound rate is derived from subscriber base and as long as it stays strong, there might be an increase in the compound annual rate and vice versa. While media rights are projected to become the industry’s largest segment by 2018, its pace of growth is expected to slow towards the end of the five-year period. 

    As per the report, even with strong segment fundamentals, such as long term deals, higher renewal rates, and enhanced inventory yields, sponsorship is expected to be surpassed in size by media rights in 2015. The net effect of new inventory will depend on future economic conditions and the industry’s ability to expand sponsor rosters, while maintaining value proposition to existing partners. Approximately 40 per cent of major pro league teams are currently either without a deal or with existing deals set to expire in the next five years. 

    The report also suggests notable measures, which pro leagues should consider such as to expand retail shops and improve sale results of their representative merchandise, which are in-house operations of the retail business. Another measure would include positioning of official team store locations outside the stadium, arena or ballpark. 

    PwC also advised, “As consumer and advertisers continue to migrate toward internet-connected devices and second-screen activity, it is more likely the traditional pay-TV model will have transformed (e.g. smaller channel packages, reduced rates) by the next deal cycle of major sports property rights. As a result, the next deal cycle, currently outside the outlook period, is unlikely to realize the same rights-fee premiums as were applied during the current cycle as cable providers sought to secure ports content in support of the overall pay-TV package model.” 

    The cyclic nature of sports is a reflection of more stadiums being built, more television contracts being signed and advertising taking a major role in globalization of sports. It shows significance growth prospects for the future.

    With Indian broadcasters, sports enthusiasts and aspiring entrepreneurs now waking up to the potential of the sports telecast and marketing business, a few lessons could be learnt from the west in order to extract the maximum from the various sports that are played in India.

  • Pro Wrestling League player auction on 3 November; bids to start at $50,000

    Pro Wrestling League player auction on 3 November; bids to start at $50,000

    MUMBAI: Over 200 players from 25 countries including India will go under the hammer on 3 November as the auction for the world’s richest Olympic style wrestling tournament Pro Wrestling League (PWL) is all set to take place in New Delhi. 

     

    Six franchisees will be bidding for players at the auction and each team will have a marquee player. The bid for the Olympic and World Championship winners will start at the base price of $50,000.

     

    “Each team has a player auction purse of Rs 2 crore. We are sure that all players picked will be delighted with the financial reward to play in the league,” said Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

     

    As many as 60 players will find buyers since each of the six teams will have a 10 players, including four women – a maximum of four overseas players and six Indians.

     

    Singh added, “The PWL Players’ auction will be a big landmark in the history of sport. It will give the six franchises the opportunity to bid for the best players and complete their squads. The player pool is so rich in talent that after the auction we will have six squads to offer highly competitive action for wrestling lovers.”

     

    About 100 top international wrestlers from 25 countries, including Olympic and World Championship stars, and over a 100 Indian wrestlers will come under the hammer. The wrestlers include more than 20 medal winners from the World Wrestling Championship held in Las Vegas last month. These include current European Games, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games champions and other international medal winners.

     

    Indian film industry’s Deol family and GMR Group, who also won the Delhi Daredevils IPL team, are among the six PWL franchisees.

     

    CDR Punjab team owner and veteran actor Dharmendra said, “I’m extremely happy that wrestling is being presented in a world class manner at a global platform, with Pro Wrestling League. I’m sure that Indian wrestling lovers will get abundant opportunities at a grass-root level.”

     

    Three-time women’s world champion Adeline Gray from the US has called the League a historic move in international wrestling. She said, “By bringing Pro event with huge sums of money, Indian organisers have taken a bold step in popularizing wrestling at the world level.”

     

    The mood is upbeat in India too. Double Olympic medalist Sushil Kumar is confident that the League will give a big boost to Indian wrestling.

     

    “It will be a great boost when the cream of world wrestling comes to India. This will be a great opportunity for our players to travel with them and learn a lot. Besides the League will keep the focus on the sport and motivate the upcoming wrestlers,” said Kumar.

     

    The PWL is a joint venture of Wrestling Federation of India and its commercial partner – Pro Sportify Pvt Limited, which is also the promoter and organiser of the league.

  • NBA extends broadcast partnership with Sony Six

    NBA extends broadcast partnership with Sony Six

    MUMBAI: National Basketball Association (NBA) and Multi Screen Media (MSM) have announced an extension of their partnership. It will provide up to 14 live NBA games per week on the channel. The partnership was first announced during 2010-11 NBA season. 

     

    With expansion of the partnership, Sony SIX will broadcast up to two regular-season games per day, in addition to NBA All-Star, the playoffs and The Finals.  Sony SIX will also create customized lifestyle-oriented, off-the-court programming from the NBA, Sony entertainment and Bollywood. 

     

    Sony SIX and KIX business head Prasana Krishnan commented, “Our partnership with the NBA has seen basketball become the fastest growing sport in India over the last few years. This clearly indicates that the TV viewing audience for the NBA will continue to rise. The launch of our customized local LIVE NBA wraparound program will also bring sports fans closer to the on-court action.”

     

    NBA India managing director Yannick Colaco asserted, “We are excited to extend our partnership with Sony SIX to continue delivering comprehensive coverage of the NBA to our fans. The popularity of the NBA continues to grow and, through the diversity of NBA programming on Sony SIX, we will continue attracting and engaging with existing and new viewers alike across India.”

     

    Sony SIX will continue to broadcast daily and weekly NBA highlight shows and integrate daily content from NBA TV, including team previews and recap shows.  The daily 30-minute highlight programs will be broadcast in prime time every day of the season.  The weekly highlight shows, hosted by a local anchor, will recap all the happenings around the NBA during the past week. 

     

    For the first time in India, the NBA and Sony SIX will introduce a customized, local live NBA wraparound program every weekend throughout the season, bringing viewers closer to the game.  The program will be hosted by a panel of basketball experts that will provide analysis and insight on all of the latest NBA news.

     

    The NBA and Sony SIX will focus on the development of basketball in India, beginning with the return of NBA Jam on 24 October.  With expansion of the partnership, more NBA players, legends and dance teams will visit India throughout the year.

     

    The coverage of the 2015-16 NBA season by Sony SIX will begin 28 October 2015.  

  • Indo-Pak cricket: BCCI – PCB meeting postponed after Shiv Sena protests

    Indo-Pak cricket: BCCI – PCB meeting postponed after Shiv Sena protests

    MUMBAI: The eagerly anticipated talks between officials of India and Pakistan’s cricket boards’ – Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) respectively on bilateral series scheduled for December in UAE were cancelled on 19 October.

     

    PCB chief Shaharyar Khan was scheduled to meet the newly elected BCCI president Shashank Manohar to discuss the resumption of cricketing ties between the two countries but plans were disrupted after Shiv Sena activists demonstrated at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai demanding cancellation of talks.

     

    The meeting was re-scheduled for 20 October.

     

    According to a PTI report, Khan and PCB’s executive committee head Najam Sethi arrived in India on 18 October to hold a meeting with Manohar for finalising the bilateral series.  

     

    According to reports, around more than 50 Shiv Sena activists stormed into the BBCI headquarters at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai chanting slogans against Pakistan.

     

    Expressing his views on Twitter, Indian Premium League (IPL) chairman Rajeev Shukla tweeted, “Strongly condemns the attack on BCCI Office by Shiv Sena.”

     

    He further said, “BCCI is a responsible body and will not do anything against national interest. Cricketing decisions should be left to BCCI.”

     

    It may be recalled that recently Shiv Sena activists also forced organisers to cancel the concert of renowned Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam Ali in Mumbai.

     

    In the light of the demonstration today, it now remains to be seen whether any progress is made between BCCI and PCB with regards to the bilateral series.

  • Sony Six & TNA to live telecast Mumbai’s Impact Wrestling event; to search for India’s next wresting star

    Sony Six & TNA to live telecast Mumbai’s Impact Wrestling event; to search for India’s next wresting star

    MUMBAI: Multi Screen Media’s (MSM) sports TV channel Sony Six will be broadcasting three live Total Nonstop Action (TNA) wrestling events in December, which are scheduled to take place in Mumbai from 2 – 4 December. 

     

    In a first for India, Sony Six will air the international sporting event live, featuring the stars and knockouts of TNA’s flagship Impact Wrestling. The final show TNA One Night Only: Mumbai on 4 December will be broadcast live in India, the United States and all around the world. It may be recalled that, in February this year,  Sony Six inked a long-term broadcast deal with TNA wrestling, which runs through 2022.

     

    At present, three stars will be part of the live telecast in India, the United States and around the world. These include:  India’s Mahabali Shera who is TNA’s first ever Indian wrestler; former TNA world heavyweight champion Ethan Crater 3 and Knockout Rebel.  

     

    Additionally, Sony Six and TNA have also partnered for the second time to search for India’s next big wrestling talent, who will join Mahabali Shera on the TNA roster. This will give aspiring wrestlers from India an opportunity to be showcase their skills on a global platform. Shera was TNA’s first ever Indian find in 2014, who was crowned after a year-long talent search led by TNA Hall of Famer and Olympic Gold medalist Kurt Angle.

     

    Sony Six business head Prasana Krishnan said, “We started this initiative two years ago. It has been one of our flagship properties, which is growing phenomenally. The number of viewers in calendar year 2014 exceeded 90 million at many stages. Wrestling is very much connected in India as it is played at the grass root level, which gives great potential as content. After cricket, it is the most viewed sports in the country and that makes it a natural candidate for investing and expanding in India.”

     

    TNA executive vice president of television and talent relations John Gaburick added, “This is only the beginning, we are following break-to-break approach and we look forward to become part of Indian wrestling community and build our relation in years to come. To start with, we are looking forward to explore and find new talent from different cities and states. As long as we keep finding new talents, we will be ready to invest.”

     

    Further discussing the content for the program, he said, “We want to show Mumbai to the world, we don’t want to just to set up a wrestling show here but also be part of the wrestling community in India. For that we have created original content for the Indian market in terms of touching field brand in the market.”

     

    Pro wrestling has been introduced in India before, when Jeff Jarrett introduced Ring Ka King. Initially, it got good ratings with a stiff competition from competitors. However, the let down was the content, which failed to sustain in the long run.

     

    This in turn gave TNA insights for further investment. Speaking on revenue generation and investments, Krishnan said, “Local sponsors will come in but for now our focus is on getting the event right. When you have a successful event, revenue always follows.”

     

    TNA’s fare is not the only action sport which attracts Indian audiences, World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) also has a strong following. Talking about competitors, Krishnan said, “We are looking forward to initiatives taken by TNA, starting from the live broadcast of the show and second edition of the talent hunt for TNA’s  roster. They are very focused and committed, and in the long run, it will definitely show some results in big way. The show will be one of a kind.”

     

    Gaburick asserted, “WWE is older than us, they had a big head start in terms of brand growth compared to what we are today. But we have more impact in the community and it is the first foundation block for any organisation. Keeping the history of sports in India in mind, we will embrace it and make a mark in Indian market.”

     

    Present on the occasion, Dalip Singh Rana also known as ‘The Great Khali’ said, “I’m very much excited about the collaboration between Sony Six and TNA wrestling. It will be a boost for the Indian wrestling market and the talent hunt will providea  platform for young talents in India.”

     

    Commenting on the possibilities of collaboration with Singh, Gaburick said, “Having worked with him before in WWE, I think we both understand the importance of Indian market for wrestling. He wishes to be part of the program and it is about timing and scheduling and getting the deal done. I think we have a bright future for wrestling in India.”

  • Vivo dials into IPL’s title sponsorship as Pepsi fizzles out; BCCI meeting underway

    Vivo dials into IPL’s title sponsorship as Pepsi fizzles out; BCCI meeting underway

    NEW DELHI: The controversy ridden Indian Premier League (IPL) has got its third official sponsor in less than nine seasons of the tournament, with Chinese smartphone maker Vivo replacing PepsiCo as the next sponsor for two years.

     
    PepsiCo, which had replaced DLF as the title sponsor of the IPL, has gone global quoting Pepsi chairman Indra Nooyi saying that the company will only associate with ethical and clean sporting properties.

     
    Confirming the new sponsorship deal with Vivo to Indiantelevision.com, a source close to the development said that the terms and conditions will remain the same as with PepsiCo.

    At the time of filing this report, IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla was not available for comment as it is understood he is attending a meeting of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which is currently underway in Mumbai. 

     
    The source said Vivo is trying to establish its presence in the Indian market and will leverage the IPL platform for the same.

     

    PepsiCo had become title sponsor of the IPL in 2013 after they bid Rs 396.8 crore for five seasons until 2017. 

     

    Earlier this month, the cola giant had informed IPL COO Sundar Raman about the decision to withdraw.

     

    Shukla had earlier said the Pepsi pullout will have no bearing on the tournament as they were already in talks with other sponsors. Shukla had clarified that PepsiCo had been a good partner, had made certain points and the issue would be resolved amicably. 

    Sources indicated that PepsiCo will continue to be associated with the IPL as beverage partner with independent IPL teams.

     

    Prior to Pepsi, DLF had paid Rs 200 crore to become title sponsors of the tournament since its inception in 2008 till 2012.

     
    It is learnt that PepsiCo was disturbed at allegations of corruption as well as arrests of players and officials on charges of betting during its sponsorship term.

     
    These included Gurunath Meiyappan, then team official of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team, and Raj Kundra, then co-owner of Rajasthan Royals (RR), who had been given a clean chit by a commission appointed by then BCCI chief N Srinivasan. 

     
    After losing the case in the Bombay High Court, BCCI went to the Supreme Court, which in July appointed the Justice RM Lodha panel after which with CSK and RR teams were banned from the tournament for two years with Meiyappan and Kundra being banned for life.