The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have confirmed that Apollo Tyres will now be sponsoring the national cricket team’s jersey for the next three years. They officially replace Dream 11, who’s sponsorship was withdrawn after certain regulations were announced against fantasy gaming applications by the Indian Government.

Apollo Tyres beat competitors like Canva and JK Cements to the chance of having their logo displayed on the national team colours. The deal is valued at INR 579 crores (66 million dollars) over a period of 3 years. Therefore, the BCCI will net approximately 22 million dollars from shirt sponsorship alone. This will be significantly higher than what Dream 11 paid to BCCI for the previous rights. That figure stood at INR 358 crores (41 million dollars/ $13.6 per year).

So, how does this deal compare to other shirt-sponsorship deals for teams in football. Let us take a look.

Compared to shirt sponsorships with the top European clubs, you can see the deal struck between BCCI and Apollo pales in comparison. Manchester City, PSG, Manchester United, Real Madrid – all have significantly higher deals per year with their main kit sponsor than the Indian Cricket Team. Manchester City taking the cake at 92 million dollars per year followed by Real Madrid at 83 million dollars and Manchester United at 75 million dollars. Ironically, Apollo Tyres is an additional sponsor of Manchester United.

We at Sportynomics feel that Apollo Tyres have landed an absolute bargain. Considering the fact that the national team will be involved in over 130 matches in the next three years and taking into consideration the love for the game in the sub-continent, the deal is a no-brainer.