BCCI sets bid floor price for Team Lead rights

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has set a reserve price of ₹3.5 crore per match for bilateral and Asian Cricket Council games, and ₹1.5 crore per match for ICC events, for the National Team Lead Sponsor rights, people aware of the matter told ET.

Fees for what’s commonly known as the jersey deal would be calculated on the actual number of matches played, with the total expected to run into several hundred crores over the contract period.

While the board has not disclosed the match count for the cycle, sources indicate around 140 games across bilateral and multilateral events are likely.


On September 2, BCCI invited bids for the National Team Lead Sponsor rights, one of Indian cricket’s most prized commercial properties, after Dream11 exited following the ban on online money games.

The three-year sponsorship cycle, running from September 30, 2025, to March 31, 2028, will cover all Indian men’s, women’s, A, and U-19 teams.

After Dream11’s exit, BCCI held direct discussions with potential sponsors but switched to an expression-of-interest process when talks stalled, an executive privy to the development said.
From the outset, the board had quoted the same per-match value as in the EoI, which translated to about ₹452 crore for the 2025-28 cycle, based on 140 matches, the executive added.

The valuation reflects BCCI’s aggressive monetisation of the India jersey despite a volatile advertising market. Cricket continues to dominate corporate sports budgets, even as companies recalibrate spending.

Bidders must have a minimum turnover or net worth of ₹300 crore, averaged over the past three years, and deposit ₹25 crore upfront as performance security, highlighting BCCI’s intent to attract only serious players.

Companies in restricted categories such as banking, insurance, sportswear, and non-alcoholic beverages can bid only if they are incumbent partners. Entire sectors, including alcohol, betting, cryptocurrency, tobacco, and online money gaming, are barred.