The Indian cricket team's jersey sponsorship is now proving to be unlucky rather than a stroke of good fortune for companies. Several major companies that entered into sponsorship deals with the BCCI have faced financial losses, regulatory pressures, and reputational crises.
Sports News: Dream11 has now exited its sponsorship contract with the BCCI. This is due to the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025, which banned real money gaming advertisements in India. After the implementation of this bill, Dream11 cancelled its ₹358 crore deal.
With this, Dream11 joins a long list of brands that have faced financial losses, regulatory pressures, or reputational crises after sponsoring the Indian cricket team's jersey. This list already includes Sahara, Star India, Oppo, Byju's, Paytm, and Micromax.
Dream11's Setback
Following the implementation of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025 in India, a ban was imposed on real money online gaming advertisements. Due to this, Dream11 terminated its major sponsorship deal with the BCCI. With this decision, Dream11 joined the long list of brands that have faced unexpected financial and regulatory troubles after sponsoring Team India's jersey.
The Unlucky Tale of Sponsorship
Over the past few years, the Indian cricket team's sponsorship has proven detrimental to several brands. The stories of the major companies involved are as follows:
- Sahara: The Sahara Group sponsored the Indian cricket team from 2001 to 2013. However, due to SEBI (Securities and Exchange Board of India) investigations and regulatory actions, Sahara went bankrupt. In 2014, the group's owner, Subrata Roy, was arrested. After this, the Sahara Group never reached its former heights.
- Star India: After Sahara, Star India sponsored Team India. However, it faced antitrust investigations and financial losses due to Hotstar and media operations. Thus, the sponsorship of Team India did not prove lucky even for a brand like Star.
- Oppo: Chinese smartphone brand Oppo made a sponsorship deal worth ₹1,079 crore. However, due to poor Return on Investment (ROI) and legal disputes related to patents, Oppo terminated its deal prematurely.
- Byju's: India's largest edtech unicorn, Byju's, did not pay ₹158 crore to the BCCI. As a result, the company faced bankruptcy petitions, regulatory investigations, and large-scale layoffs.
- Paytm and Micromax: Paytm faced financial challenges and regulatory pressures. Meanwhile, Micromax collapsed in the Indian smartphone market due to Chinese competition.
The Indian cricket team's jersey sponsorship has always been a symbol of brand value and global exposure. However, in recent years, it has proven to be a double-edged sword for companies. Major companies invested heavily, but regulatory hurdles and economic circumstances put them at a disadvantage.
