Asia Cup: Men in Blue set to play without shirt sponsors in Dubai

The exit of Dream 11, the online money gaming company, as the sponsors of Indian cricket teams is likely to leave them without a jersey sponsor in the Asia Cup 2025 in the UAE.

The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill 2025, passed in both houses of the Parliament last week and sanctioned by President Draupadi Murmu, resulted in the fantasy sports company pulling out midway of sponsorship.

 The eight-team Asia Cup, to be played in T20 format in Dubai and Abu Dhabi this year, kicks off on 9 September with India playing their first group league game against hosts UAE the next day.

‘’We don’t even have two weeks left. We are trying but floating a new tender, completing legal processes and handling technicalities will take time. As for a short-term sponsor only for the Asia Cup, we are not going that way. Our focus is on securing a sponsor for the next two-and-a-half years, until the 2027 ODI World Cup in October-November,’’ a BCCI source was quoted as saying.

 The title sponsorship of Indian teams dominated the agenda of an emergency meeting of the Apex Council of BCCI on Thursday, chaired by interim president Rajeev Shukla. Incidentally, Shukla – a vice president – has stepped in as interim president as current incumbent Roger Binny had stepped down on turning 70 in July.

The BCCI, which still adheres to the Justice R.M. Lodha Commission’s recommendations for governance, has an age limit of 70 years for officials at the moment – a limit which will be relaxed to 75 years after the National Sports Governance Bill is passed in a few months.

 Shukla, the BCCI’s man for all seasons, has previously served in various capacities – from being a manager on tours to Vice President and chairman of the IPL in 2015. The presidency, however, is a new assignment for him albeit a shortlived one till the next AGM in September.

 The choice for a replacement for Binny, the former Indian allarounder and a key member of the 1983 World Cup winning squad, will not be an easy one as the BCCI has shifted to a policy of falling back on as former cricketer as presidents in recent years. Sourav Ganguly, former India captain, was the first incumbent in such a capacity – having served from 2019-2022.  

Earlier last week, Devojit Saikia, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary, confirmed that the board’s association with Dream11 has ended and deliberations over finding a new lead sponsor is on. Dream11 had signed a three-year deal worth Rs 358 crore in July 2023 to replace edtech company Byju’s as the lead sponsor of the Indian cricket team. It also had a significant presence in the Indian Premier League (IPL) through multiple franchise tie-ups and being lead sponsor in 2020 after Vivo’s pullout.