Relationship with Virat Kohli long-standing, continues, says Puma

Virat Kohli back in top 10 of ICC Test Ranking

Virat Kohli's association with Puma India has not ended, the company clarified on February 7, following reports of the former India team captain quitting ties with the sports brand.

Karthik Balagopalan, Managing Director of Puma India, has said, “Puma’s relationship with Virat Kohli is long-standing and continues.”

CNBC-Tv18 had reported earlier today that Cricketer Virat Kohli will likely be ending his endorsement deal with Puma India. The sports star has been associated with the brand for around eight years.

The sports and athleisure brand had signed Kohli in 2017 in a deal amounting to Rs 110 crore. Kohli had become the first Indian sportsperson to sign an over Rs 100 crore deal. The bulk of the endorsement deal was a fixed payout amounting to Rs 12 to 14 crore annually.

Kohli is expected to become the brand ambassador of Agilitas Sports Pvt Ltd, another sportswear and athleisure brand that was launched by former Puma India Managing Director Abhishek Ganguly in May 2023.

Agilitas Sports had raised Rs 100 crore from Nexus Venture Partners in December last year. The company had also secured Rs 400 crore investment in May from funds managed by Convergent Finance LLP under Harsha Raghavan, and an additional Rs 30 crore from individual investors.

Virat Kohli topped celebrity brand value rankings for five consecutive years until 2021. However, Bollywood star Ranveer Singh became India's most valuable celebrity, taking over Virat Kohli in 2022.

Kohli's brand value stood at $176.9 million in 2022, down from $185.7 million in 2021, according to Kroll’s Celebrity Brand Valuation Report 2022.

He saw a 5 percent decline in brand value from 2021 due to his erratic performance on the field and because of being in and out of the India team which is a risk associated with his brand, Aviral Jain, Managing Director, Valuation Advisory Services, Kroll had pointed out earlier to Moneycontrol.

Also, the fees which he used to command softened a bit in 2022. While he has been able to continue to grow his brand portfolio, there is a drop in brand value, Jain had said.