IPL: Hotstar withdraws as associate sponsors of the T20 league

The cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL) has been struck by a massive jolt as the T20 tournament has lost an Associate Sponsor with Hotstar, Star India’s online streaming platform. It withdrew as the onground sponsors of the popular league in India. It has been learned that the deal was worth 42 crores per year. IPL associate sponsorships are reported to be in the range of 40-80 crores.

However, the big move won’t have any bearing on Hotstar’s digital streaming rights. Earlier the media rights deal was seen as being an ambitious one and this year after the conclusion of the 2019 edition of the prestigious IPL, Hotstar claimed to have crossed 300 million viewers. The viewership was also reported to have increased by 74 percent compared to the numbers back in 2018.

Hotstar’s exit as the onground sponsors was put forth by an official in the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). “There was an exit clause in the deal and Hotstar chose to exercise it,” the source was quoted as saying in India Today.

Back in 2017, Hotstar had joined as onground sponsors when Star India cracked a five-year deal media rights deal with the IPL. Star India’s consolidated winning bid for television and digital rights was worth a stunning 16,347.5 crores. Hotstar is a popular platform as the numbers crank up in a significant manner when a crunch game is underway.

IPL 2019 kept the audience at the edge of their seats

The IPL was a witness to its 12th edition this season and there was no dearth of excitement by any means. It took place before the World Cup and there were doubts that the league wouldn’t be a star-studded one. But things panned out in a positive manner and most of the games were exciting.

Mumbai Indians (MI) won the championship for the fourth time, beating the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the final at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad. The planning for the next season of the T20 extravaganza has already begun with franchises making changes to their support staff.

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP), both of whom couldn’t make the playoffs last season, will be having new head coaches. The trades have also started with Mumbai Indians (MI) trading Mayank Markande for Sherfane Rutherford with Delhi Capitals (DC).

List of Virat Kohli’s ridiculously expensive assets