The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is thought to be facing the prospect of the Indian men’s team touring Australia in November without a kit supply sponsor in place.
The kit supply rights for the Indian team have been up for grabs since global sportswear brand Nike indicated that it would not be extending its contract beyond its September expiry date.
Nike had held the rights since 2006 and had requested to continue in the position at a reduced rate, but this was rejected by the BCCI.
That led to an invitation to tender for the rights being launched on August 3, running until August 26.
It has been reported by India’s New Indian Express that whilst there was interest from the likes of Adidas and Puma, there weren’t any final bids submitted, despite the base asking price being reduced from Rs88 lakh ($120,000) per match to Rs61 lakh ($83,000), with a minimum guarantee Rs 6 Crore ($818,000) per year.
A BCCI board official told The New Indian Express: “We know the market situation is bad, which is why companies not exactly into sports kit manufacturing were also welcomed to bid, provided they had an agreement with an apparel company. Even then, nobody submitted bids.
“We have two options. One is to extend the deadline and see if anyone submits a bid this time, or postpone the entire process by a couple of months. We will have a decision in place in a couple of days.”
India’s men’s team will travel to Australia in November following the conclusion of the Indian Premier League, final fixture dates are yet to be confirmed by the BCCI and Cricket Australia.
John Stephenson
john@cricketinvestor.co.uk
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