Non-cricket sports sponsorship up by 48.8 per cent in 2015: ESP Report

Virat Kohli stepped into the elite Rs 1,000 million endorsement club to which Tendulkar and Dhoni already belong.

ESP properties -- the entertainment and sports arm of GroupM, and the sports business news agency SportzPower have released the third edition of the report on sports sponsorship. The report titled 'Sporting Nation in the Making', captures trends and developments in advertising and sponsorship in the Indian sports industry in 2015.

Some key highlights:

• Sports sponsorship in India increased by 12.3 per cent in 2015 - On-air -- 30 per cent, and On-ground -- 70 per cent, compared to the previous year. This accounted for 10.4 per cent of the total Indian AdEx.

• On-ground sponsorship grew by 30 per cent from Rs 7,948 million in 2014 to Rs 10,305 million in 2015. While cricket continues to be the biggest chunk, non-cricket sports are the growth drivers.

• Key brands that drove the cricketing upswing on ground were Paytm, CEAT Tyres and MRF Tyres with a combined inflow of around Rs 1,078 million per year, increasing cricket spends by 14 per cent.

• A 32 per cent rise in on-ground sponsorships (at Rs 470 million) was seen by tennis in 2015. While the Champions Tennis League added brands like Kotak Mahindra Bank, Gatorade and Grey Goose, title sponsor for IPTL Coca-Cola, renewed its sponsorship while also becoming a 10 per cent stakeholder.

• With a massive 300 per cent rise year-on-year, Pro Kabaddi League revenues soared to Rs 480 million in 2015, and that, too, without a title sponsor.

• Football registered a 67 per cent increase year-on-year close to Rs 603 million.

• The endorsements industry grew by 27 per cent. International athletes contributed to 25 per cent of the endorsement numbers in 2015.

Cricket team sponsorship saw a marginal 1.9 per cent drop from Rs 3,478 million in 2014 to Rs 3,412 million in 2015. The drop is on the back of less number of matches played by the Indian team.

• Year 2015 saw an increase of 48.8 per cent in non-cricket sports, driving the market (despite the drop in cricket) up by 13 per cent to Rs 2,170 million.

• Virat Kohli stepped into the elite Rs 1,000 million endorsement club to which Tendulkar and Dhoni already belong.

• Endorsements from other sports rose by 90 per cent, from Rs 221 million to Rs 420 million in 2015, with Saina Nehwal, Sania Mirza and Mary Kom accounting for 40 per cent of the endorsements pulled in by non-cricket sports on air.

• Despite the challenges of time zone differences, the ICC World Cup managed to garner Rs 5,000 million in ad revenues in 2015.

• On-air sponsorship increased by 6.8 per cent year-on-year from Rs 25,180 million in 2014 to Rs 26,900 million.

View full report here: