Reports: Virat Kohli to remain top-paid celebrity brand endorser despite not captaining any format

Alongside being one of the greatest cricketers, Virat Kohli is also one of the biggest brands. Owing to his stature, the 33-year-old is one of the top-paid celebrities in India. Kohli recently announced his decision to step down as India’s Test captain and thus, now no longer leads India in any of the three formats.

However, it has now been reported that the batting maestro is expected to continue his reign as the top-paid celebrity brand endorser in the country even after relinquishing captaincy from all forms of the game. According to a report by Duff and Phelps, Kohli had earlier retained the top spot as India’s most valuable celebrity brand for the fourth consecutive year with a value of around $238 million.

Santosh Desai, who happens to be the MD & CEO at Futurebrands India, said that his brand value wouldn’t be affected in the short run. However, he did state that his form will be the key in the long run. He also felt the Delhi batter’s relationship with Anushka Sharma will ensure that his value as a celebrity brand endorser doesn’t diminish.

Every endorsement will be a competition between Virat Kohli and the new captain: Harish Bijoor

“In the short run, not being at the helm of things is unlikely to affect his value as a celebrity brand endorser. His relationship with Anushka Sharma, as a duo, will help ease things. But in the long run, his form will be key,” said Santosh Desai as quoted by TOI.

“Even now, every other ad that you see on TV has Dhoni in it,” he added. Besides, there are several players like MS Dhoni, and even Sachin Tendulkar, who were in the limelight even during the fag end of their careers. Harish Bijoor, who happens to be the CEO at Harish Bijoor Consults, said that brand endorsements generally chase the guy at the top. Thus, he felt that the upcoming endorsements would be a competition between Kohli and the new Test skipper.

“Brand endorsements have a habit of chasing the guy at the top. In cricket, it is the captain of the team. If you are not the skipper, you will still have your old brand endorsements. But when it comes to new ones, every endorsement will be a competition between Kohli and the new captain,” said Harish Bijoor.