Women’s Premier League: Franchises attract a number of sponsors, but are they getting due value?

Tata Women's Premier League

Franchises of the Women's Premier League (WPL) have struck deals with sponsors for the inaugural season starting from March 4.

Brands like fantasy sports platform Dream 11 and consumer durables brand Usha have extended their existing partnership with Mumbai Indians (MI) to its women’s team, and come on board as associate and official partners, respectively.

Sponsor support

The franchise has got on board a total for seven brands, including Lotus Herbals on the front of the jersey and Ashok Leyland on the back as principal partners. Sonata Software, along with Dream 11, are associate partners, whose logos will be on the lead and non-lead arm. Usha, Max Life Insurance, and Nutrizoe are official partners, with Usha taking up the lead spot on the cap and helmet. Max Life and Nutrizoe will not feature on the jersey or the player’s gear, but on other advertising / branding done by MI.

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) has signed deals with Kajaria Ceramics, which is coming on board as title sponsor. Mia by Tanishq, Dream 11, Vega beauty, Himalaya Face Care, and Puma have signed on as principal sponsors.

In a recent interview to Moneycontrol, Dhiraj Malhotra, CEO, Delhi Capitals  said that WPL has opened a new dimension as many women-centric brands have shown interest in partnering with WPL teams. The franchise has signed on saree brand Navyasa,  JSW Paints and Sportsbuzz11 as principal partners.

Skincare brand Joy Personal Care, Yatra.com, and Galaxy Basmati Rice have come on board as associate partners, while Optimum Nutrition and Jacob's Creek Unvined are its official partners.

The other two franchises — UP Warriorz, owned by Capri Global, and Gujarat Giants, owned by Adani Sportsline — are new to the world of Indian cricket,  and are yet to announce their complete roster of sponsors.

UP Warriorz has announced that it has got on board Patanjali Ayurved as the team’s principal sponsor.

Brand connect

"Lot of brands want to associate with IPL, but it is too expensive. So, for those brands, WPL will be viable. Then there are brands that are already associated with IPL and are extending their partnership to WPL because they want to demonstrate that they stand for gender equality," said Santosh N, Managing Partner, D and P Advisory.

In a statement, Usha International said that the brand has been supporting sports for inclusivity even at the grassroots, so associating with WPL made perfect sense.  The association reinforces its emphasis on equal opportunity for all genders, said Komal Mehra, Head, Sports Initiatives and Associations, Usha International.

Malhotra said that WPL has aroused strong interest among advertisers, and added that the team has been able to achieve its sponsorship revenue target.

Sponsorship revenues

While franchises have been able to get a good number of brands as sponsors, it is important to look at the sponsorship revenue the teams are estimated to earn in the first season of WPL.

"On average, each team should  see  sponsorship revenues in the range of Rs 10-15 crore," said Santosh.

He added that season 1 is expected to see total sponsorship revenues   of about Rs 50–75 crore for all the five teams put together.

In comparison, IPL season 1 saw each team clock sponsorship revenues of Rs 30-45 crore on average (not adjusted for inflation), said Santosh.

"There are many factors that impact sponsorship revenue, including the size of the audience, and the marketing strategies of the teams and of the league itself. In 2008, men’s cricket was already very popular with India being the biggest cricket market with the largest audience. So, the sponsorship revenues of season 1, adjusted for inflation, will be very high compared to WPL season 1, given the relatively lower popularity of women’s cricket," Santosh explained.

Earnings estimates

Santosh said WPL franchises  are likely to earn around Rs 200-250 crore from sponsorships in the first five-year cycle, and will break even in the next cycle.

"Franchises will get 80 percent from the central pool, which includes media rights of Rs 951 crore (Viacom18 won media rights for the 2023-2027 cycle of WPL). Rs 100-150 crore will come from the title sponsorship (won by the Tata group for the next five years). So, the central pool is about Rs 1,000-1,100 crore, and the teams will get 80 percent of that, about Rs 800-900 crore. Add team-level sponsorships, and the total income of all the teams put together will be close to Rs 1,000 crore. So, in terms of what the franchises have spent, there is a significant gap."

But, he added, post the next cycle of media rights, WPL franchises are likely to start making profits.

"In the first five seasons of IPL, only one or two teams had made money. Everyone started making decent money after the 2018 media rights, and in the 10th year all teams turned positive," he said.