BBC SPORT | Cricket | More strife to come in sponsor row



By Oliver Brett BBC Sport Online

Cricket's major sponsors are warning the game's top players that they will play tough in the run-up to the World Cup.

The second biggest global tournament, the Champions Trophy, got underway on Thursday, but not before the entire build-up was overshadowed by an unsightly row.

The controversy saw the International Cricket Council (ICC), in its paranoia over the potential of "ambush marketing," attempting to strong-arm players into abandoning their personal sponsorship deals.

Eventually, a compromise of sorts was reached, with players agreeing to forgo their personal deals for the duration of the tournament and 17 further days.

We can't be expected to be charitable as a business organisation

Atul Sodi, Hero Honda

Initially, the ICC had wanted them to sign a contract binding them for 30 days either side of the tournament.

India, whose players do not benefit from central contracts, rely hugely on personal sponsorship deals.

And their top names waited until the eleventh hour before agreeing to fly to Sri Lanka.

Now, two official sponsors of the ICC event, both from India, said they will not make further concessions for next year's World Cup in South Africa.

"The time is probably right for a sponsors union because their interests need to be protected also," said Ganesh Mahalingam of LG Electronics India.

S Ganguly; R Dravid
India's players arguably have the most to lose

The ICC is expected to review contract terms at the conclusion of the Champions Trophy later this month.

Hero Honda, another official sponsor, said it would have to adopt a more hard-nosed approach in the future.

"It is unfortunate everything got messed up," said Atul Sobti, senior vice-president of Hero Honda.

"We hope the matter gets resolved immediately after this tournament. We can't be expected to be charitable as a business organisation beyond a point."

The world governing body had inserted the ambush marketing clause after sponsors spent 550 million dollars for three Champions Trophy and two World Cup events until 2007.

Cricket's most famous case of "ambush marketing" came during the 1996 World Cup.

And the ICC are already acting fast to avoid repeats.

We have an alternate campaign in place. After that we will revert to the original images of the players

Ruchika Batra, Samsung

India will not be playing with their regular Sahara logo on their shirts because of a conflict with ICC sponsor South African Airways.

Pepsi overshadowed the tournament's official sponsors Coca Cola by signing up the world's top cricketers.

It launched a campaign urging the public there was "nothing official about it."

The cricket endorsement market in cricket-mad India is valued at over 10 million dollars a year.

The country's top three cricketers, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly and Rahul Dravid gain a major chunk of that sum.

It is estimated that almost 280 million dollars of ICC's entire sponsorship purse has come from India-specific companies eager to bank on huge television audiences in the country.

Samsung India, an obvious rival of LG Electronics, had signed up seven Indian cricket stars.

Fiat logo
Fiat cannot use Tendulkar at present

They have confirmed they will abide by the agreement and refrain from airing players' advertisements for 17 days after the tournament.

"We have an alternate campaign in place. After that we will revert to the original images of the players," said Samsung's Ruchika Batra.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the fence from Hero Honda sit two companies using Tendulkar as a figurehead.

TVS scooters and Fiat have also said they will not air the master batsman's advertisements for the stipulated 17-day moratorium.

Whether they will be so easily persuaded after the World Cup, especially if the official sponsors demand a longer cool-off period, remains to be seen.

One thing is clear. This is not an issue that's not about to disappear too quickly.


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