Reshab AgarwalIPL is the most loved cricket league of India. And like most years we have been waiting for it this year too. But, with the China controversy that is going on, VIVO, who was the title sponsor last year has been replaced by Dream 11. But, does that mean Chinese investments in IPL is over? Let’s find out.
Are there any Chinese investments in IPL 2020?
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Though, over the dispute with the Chinese, Dream 11 has replaced the title sponsor Vivo for IPL 2020. But, does it means IPL has no ties with the Chinese investors. Well if you are here only for the answer then its “No”. Let’s see how.
Traders’ body Confederation of All India Traders on 19th August wrote to BCCI objecting Dream 11 winning the title sponsor. It is because Tencent, which is a Chinese company, has the majority stakes in the “so-called” Indian company Dream 11. The stakes value at around $100 million which Tencent invested in a series D funding in 2018.
Another sponsor in the IPL, such as swiggy also has huge investments from the Chinese. So, directly or indirectly, the Chinese are invested in the league.
What did CAIT have to say about it?
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Writing to Saurav Ganguly, president of BCCI, CAIT wrote: “We are deeply pained to note that now Dream11 has been chosen as a sponsor of IPL 2020 which has Chinese company Tencent Global as one of the major stakeholders.”
CAIT believes that having Dream 11 as the title sponsor in one of the most loved leagues in India is not a good idea. According to them, having a company that has enormous investment from the Chinese is going to hurt the sentiment of the people.
What are your thoughts on that? Do tell us in the comments below.
Is it possible to remove all of the Chinese Investments in Indian sports?
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Well, if you say possible then going by the saying nothing is impossible, it can be done. But, the real question is, Is it practical? Then the answer is ‘No’.
See, almost every company that is linked with IPL or any other Indian sports or team for that matter is Chinese or at least have a considerable investment from them. OPPO, which is a Chinese company, had a 5-year partnership with BCCI to be the official team sponsor of the under-19 cricket team, Men’s A team and woman’s team.
Oppo transferred the official team sponsorship to Byjus last year. But, even Byjus has a massive investment from Tencent, which is a Chinese company. The companies Zomato, sponsor of RCB and Paytm, title sponsor of BCCI are also tied to the Chinese. All these companies have some significant Chinese investment.
So, that was our thoughts on the sponsorship games going on in IPL. It is not practically possible to remove all form of Chinese investments from all Indian Sports. It should also be kept in mind that almost all startups in India have some Chinese investment.
Everyone has their views, but it is not entirely appropriate to ban companies from participating in title sponsorships only because they have investments from China. Do tell us what your views on the same are.
On the topics of sports, Also Read: Top 7 Indian Cricketer’s startup investments