MAM
Nike wins Indian team kit sponsorhip with near Rs 2 billion bid; beats out Adidas, Reebok
MUMBAI: Just do it! That is certainly what the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is managing to do with huge success as far as extracting value out of the Indian cricket team goes. In another major step to market the bat and ball game and make revenue from various sources, the BCCI announced today that it has awarded the rights for the official kit sponsorship to sports goods giant Nike. The winning bid: Rs 1.9666 billion.
The sponsorship enables Nike to get branding on the non leading arm of the cricketers. Nike along with Reebok will also be the official licensee for apparel merchandise for the BCCI. The deal runs from 1 January 2006 to 31 December 2010.
The BCCI opened the tender bids for the kit sponsors on 15 December 2005 and closed it on 19 December 2005 at 5 pm. Besides Nike, the other parties that made the shortlist were Adidas and Reebok.
Speaking on this BCCI VP Lalit Modi says, “Nike’s bid was the highest at Rs 196.66 crores (1.9666 billion). Adidas bid Rs 127.50 crores (Rs1.275 billion). Reebok had bid Rs 119.48 crores (Rs 1.1948 billion). We had asked for a minimun guarantee of Rs 1 million from the bidders. This period covers 190 match days. Last time around Sahara had paid Rs 8.5 crores (Rs 85 million) for sponsorship of the non leading arm. If you make a like-to-like comparison, Nike paid Rs 96 crores (Rs 960 million) for the same this time. In addition Reliance Infocom, Reliance Energy, Slazenger and Admiran bought the tender.”
“The parties bid for 60 test matches and 138 ODIs. To this we have added 50 ODIs. This deal is a landmark because it represents the first structured licensing programme that the BCCI has come out with. Coupled with the deal with Sahara for team sponsorship, the deal makes the Indian cricket team the most valuable team from a sponsorship point of view in the world. It will earn $27.12 million a year. The football club Juventus is second at $22.8 million. We were looking for a partner who could bring cutting edge innovation in apparel and footwear,”adds Modi.
Nike’s sports marketing director for the Asia Pacific region Peter Bratschi says, “This is truly a defining moment for Nike as this is our first step towards demonstrating our commitment to India and the game of cricket. We are thankful to BCCI for placing the trust in Nike and its innovative products, and for choosing us as their official kit sponsor for the Indian cricket team. We look forward to working with the team, and to creating the best performance products for the players.”
The parties were asked to quote on a few parameters for being an apparel licensee. A minimum royalty rate was fixed at nine per cent
Bidders were also asked to quote for the supply of free products for the BCCI. They were required to quote amounts year wise, that they thought they would need to spend for the BCCI. The BCCI had the option to pay for this and add it to the base compensation.
As far as the base compensation for the non-leading arm of the players shirt was concerned, the minimum price per ODI and test was fixed at Rs 1 million.
The kit will include travel gear, head gear, t-shirts, caps, socks, sunglasses and wristbands. Nike has a sports lab and takes inputs from players whenever it develops products. Nike will market replicas of the Indian team kit through its distribution network in India and abroad.
Modi further adds,” The tender documents for the broadcast rights for India cricket will open next month. The BCCI is looking at other sponsorship opportunities as well. These too will be unveilled next month. The reports that DD will not be allowed to sell airtime on India cricket that airs on it are misleading. The BCCI will be coming out with a tender document inviting marketing agencies to bid for the right to sell airtime on DD. If DD’s offer is the best then it can do the same.”
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
