Brands
Puma returns to IPL pitch, inks multi-year partnership with RCB
MUMBAI: After seven years, global sports brand Puma has made a comeback on the Indian Premier League pitch after signing a strategic long-term partnership with Royal Challengers Bangalore. Under the terms of the deal, Puma will be the official kit partner of the team from the upcoming IPL 2021 season. The sportswear major already has an ongoing association with RCB team captain Virat Kohli, which makes this partnership a natural progression for the brand.
Kohli said, “A global brand with a strong sporting vision and great quality products, [Puma’s] extensive distribution network through offline and online channels will ensure fans have access to RCB merchandise across the country. Over the years, I've had a great experience working with the brand and I’m excited to see Puma extend its partnership with the team that I play for.”
The brand will have exclusive retailing rights to RCB’s take down and replica jerseys, adding pan-India merchandise reach for the franchise across retail and e-commerce channels. Elevating the partnership beyond a traditional sports sponsorship model, the collection will also include a fanwear range of polo tees, shorts, pants, flipflops and caps.
Puma India & southeast Asia managing director Abhishek Ganguly said, “The team’s growing fan base and extensive social following makes RCB our ideal partner on the cricket pitch. Over the last few months, sport has had a positive influence by bringing about a sense of cheer among our consumers. With more people playing and following their favourite game, the culture of sport will definitely strengthen and evolve further. We are committed to fuelling this passion by continuing to invest in the right products, partners and players in the sporting ecosystem.”
Royal Challengers Bangalore vice president & head Rajesh V Menon said, “RCB’s ethos is to embody the philosophy of #PlayBold and truly embrace the challenger spirit in all that we do as a cricket team, a brand and business. We are positive that with Puma’s marketing capabilities, fans will have access to not only great merchandise but also some very interesting activations and engagements through the IPL season and beyond.”
RCB merchandise will be available at all Puma stores, on Puma.com RCB website, mobile app and the RCB Bar & Café from the first week of April.
MUMBAI: He may have clocked the fastest time on track, but Usain Bolt is now sprinting straight into cricket fandom again. The eight-time Olympic medallist has returned to spotlight his long-standing support for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, featuring in sportswear giant PUMA India’s latest #RCBEverywhere campaign. Dressed in the 2026 RCB jersey, Bolt shared the moment on social media, pairing it with a throwback to the kit he first received in 2021 marking a fandom that has only gathered pace since.
A self-confessed cricket enthusiast and admirer of Virat Kohli, Bolt’s association with RCB has evolved through Puma’s global athlete ecosystem. The brand, which has partnered with Bolt for over two decades, is now leveraging his cross-sport appeal to amplify RCB’s already global fan culture.
The campaign builds on a behaviour that fans have long embraced taking the jersey beyond stadiums and scales it with one of the most recognisable athletes in the world. Bolt’s earlier appearance alongside Kohli and RCB players in a viral reel last year further cemented his status as an unlikely yet enthusiastic member of the RCB faithful.
With #RCBEverywhere, Puma is not just selling merchandise, it is exporting fandom. The campaign invites supporters to join the movement, with opportunities to win match shirts and tickets, while participating in a global conversation that now stretches far beyond Bengaluru.
From Olympic tracks to IPL terraces, Bolt’s latest cameo proves one thing, speed may be his signature, but fandom travels just as fast.
