The popularity of fantasy sports brands has skyrocketed since the introduction of apps such as Dream11 and My11Circle. The Indian fantasy sports industry is expected to reach $2.5 billion in 2022, according to a FICCI-EY report.
Cricket broadcasting entities used to rely heavily on fantasy sports platforms to bag the sponsorship assets during the live broadcast of the game until 2020. There is a major shift in the trend due to the betting surrogate brands.
Betting is illegal in India and so is its advertising, however, these companies have found a hack by launching sports news websites with the same name. By doing this process, it provides an opportunity for these organizations to grab eyeballs in a verified manner. Â
The betting brands like Parimatch, 1xbet, Betway and FairPlay have managed to ink an association with different sports entities across the globe. Big Bash League (BBL), Pakistan Super League (PSL), Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) and also some international cricket organizations have teamed up with several betting companies recently. The betting entities have taken up some highly beneficial live broadcast features that allow them to run on-field graphics, horizontal banners and logo bug consistently.
Betway has signed a partnership deal with Cricket South Africa (CSA) and Cricket West Indies (CWI). On the other end, Parimatch has also formed an association with the VIVO Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) and Tamil Thalaivas.Â
The Indian Premier League‘s 15th season could be the year of these betting-powered “news brands” to take up key sponsorship assets. The betting brands will look to secure some lucrative sponsorship assets in the live broadcast and streaming on Star Sports and Disney+Hotstar respectively, which are the official media rights holder of the world’s leading T20 domestic league.