Yoga guru Ramdev’s Patanjali is considering a bid for title sponsorship of the Indian Premier League after the Board of Control for Cricket in India and Chinese smartphone manufacturer Vivo suspended their current sponsorship deal, The Economic Times reported.
Vivo’s sudden exit means BCCI are hunting for a title sponsor ahead of the 13th edition that is scheduled to start on September 19. Brands like Jio, Amazon, the Tata group, Dream11, Adani group and education start-up Byjus are believed to be queuing up to take the title sponsorship, but Patanjali’s spokesperson confirmed that the brand is considering joining the race.
“We are considering the IPL title sponsorship for this year since we want to give the Patanjali brand a global marketing platform,” Patanjali spokesperson SK Tijarawala confirmed to ET, adding Patanjali is considering making a proposal to the BCCI.
Read: Wouldn’t call it financial crisis, it’s just a blip: Ganguly on IPL losing Vivo as title sponsor
Patanjali is seen as a strong nationalistic brand and it could aid the IPL’s image considering that it will replace a Chinese sponsor but the brand lacks an international appeal.
“Patanjali as a title sponsor for IPL will do more for Patanjali than for IPL. While the caste hierarchy among brands could play out, Patanjali owning the title sponsorship would be contextual from a nationalist perspective, since there is an enormous anti-China sentiment prevailing in the country,” said brand strategist Harish Bijoor.
Patanjali was recently caught in a controversy after Ramdev claimed that the company is launching Coronil kits that can cure Covid-19. The Ayush ministry instructed the company to sell products only as an immunity booster and not as a cure for the disease.