Ahead of the ICC World Cup 2023, Disney Star, the official broadcaster which has exclusive broadcast and media rights for linear and digital platforms, on Wednesday unveiled the list of 26 sponsors featuring the top brands. Out of these 26 sponsors, a notable trend observed a relatively conspicuous absence of several startups and new-age companies from the list of sponsors last year.
Making this factual, the newly released list has the presence of few startups out of its 26 sponsors. Those startups are PhonePe, a digital platform for financial services; Dream11, an Indian fantasy sports platform; LendingKart, a digital lending platform.
Moreover, the forthcoming ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, set to commence in India on October 5, is predicted to generate a staggering sponsorship revenue of over INR 1,248 crore.
This is reportedly an evident contrast to some of the sponsoring brands in the last World Cup which included Byju’s, Dream11, CarDekho, Google Pay, Amazon Pay, Amazon Echo, Amazon Prime, Policybazaar, Paisabazaar, Pharmeasy, Swiggy, PhonePe, Uber, UberEats, Cars 24, PharmEasy and Netflix.
The company’s top official Sanjog Gupta, in the media reports quoted as saying, “Several of these sponsors have opted for both TV and digital formats and some of them are sponsors only on TV or for digital.” He added, “The Company has custom-built packages for advertisers, which will serve their brand objectives. It is also giving a ‘big push’ on the digital side this year, which allows advertisers to connect with specific audience cohorts.”
The other brands in the sponsors’ list include – Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, Hindustan Unilever, Coca-Cola, Havells, IndusInd Bank, Pernod India, Booking.com, Peter England, Kingfisher Packaged Drinking Water, Mondelez, Emirates, Diageo, Jindal Panther, MRF Tyres, BPCL, Herbalife, Haier Appliances, AMFI, Google Pay, Polycab, Amul, VIDA by Hero Motorcorp and Amazon.
While sharing the excitement over the upcoming event, Ajit Varghese, Head of Network – Ad Sales at Disney Star shared in a statement, “The ICC World Cup 202 promises to be an unparalleled cricketing spectacle from a viewers’ interest and advertisers’ participation. We are delighted to have these esteemed brands using this opportunity to get maximum impact and drive growth for their brands or businesses. Disney Star is all set to provide an unmatched cricketing extravaganza with its programming and create a viewing experience for audiences across television and digital platforms, promising unforgettable moments for everyone.”
The ICC World Cup 2023 will be played at 10 venues across India. Disney Star, which operates Star Sports channels and Disney+ Hotstar OTT, will be broadcasting the 50-overs ICC World Cup mega tournament. The World Cup will see 10 countries fighting for the coveted trophy and there are a total of 48 matches scheduled.
The World Cup is returning to India after 12 years and from the organizers’ side, “there is immense buzz, hype and anticipation.”
