Apollo Tyres has secured the rights to the Indian cricket team jerseys for INR 579 crore

Apollo Tyres has secured the rights to the Indian cricket team jerseys for INR 579 crore

The BCCI has officially sealed a historic jersey sponsorship deal with Apollo Tyres. The sponsorship deal spans three years and covers 121 bilateral games and 21 ICC matches.

Apollo Tyres has officially won the sponsorship rights for the Indian cricket team, sealing a massive three-year deal worth ₹579 crore. The Gurgaon-based company beat out strong competition from Canva and JK Cements, which had offered ₹544 crore and ₹477 crore, respectively. This marks a major moment for Apollo, which operates in over 100 countries and now steps into the spotlight of Indian cricket.

The deal covers 121 bilateral matches and 21 ICC games, working out to an average of ₹4.77 crore per match. However, the actual value per game may vary, since ICC matches are priced lower than bilateral ones. The BCCI had set a base price of ₹3.5 crore for bilateral games and ₹1.5 crore for ICC events.

This sponsorship change was triggered by a government order banning real-money gaming companies, which led to the cancellation of Dream11’s deal with the BCCI. Dream11 had previously held the rights with a ₹358 crore agreement. The timing of the ban was tricky, coming just before the Asia Cup, which forced Team India to play without a jersey sponsor during the tournament in the UAE.

Apollo’s branding will first appear during the India A vs Australia A one-day series in Kanpur on September 30, October 2, and 5. The BCCI has already asked selectors to announce the India A squad early so that jerseys can be printed in time. The first official senior team appearance with Apollo’s logo will be during the two-Test home series against the West Indies starting October 2, followed by a white-ball tour of Australia.

The bidding process took place at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai. While Canva and JK Cements were part of the final race, two other companies UP-based Shank Air and Dubai-based Omniyat had shown interest by purchasing the tender documents but didn’t participate in the final bidding.

Apollo’s winning bid was guided by Mumbai-based WPP Media, which helped with valuation and strategy. Before the bidding, many in the industry were unsure if the BCCI would attract strong offers, especially after the ban on gaming companies, which have been major sponsors across Indian sports. But Apollo’s ₹579 crore deal not only proved the doubters wrong, it also beat Dream11’s previous deal by a whopping ₹200 crore.