BCCI bosses meet over Star India discount plea, BYJU’s encashment request
Star India, which holds BCCI’s home season media rights, has asked the cricket body for a Rs 130-crore discount in the existing deal. On the other hand, jersey sponsor BYJU’s, which is on its way out, wants the board to encash bank guarantee worth an estimated Rs 140 crore to honour the current agreement.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) top brass deliberated on the two subjects for more than an hour in a virtual meeting of the Apex Council on Monday.
BYJU’s demand
In November, BYJU’s communicated to the BCCI that it wanted to exit as the jersey sponsor of the Indian cricket team. But the board asked the EdTech company to continue until at least March 2023.
In June, BYJU’s had extended its jersey sponsorship agreement with the BCCI until November 2023 for an estimated $35 million.
While around Rs 140 crore will be paid to the BCCI through bank guarantee, the remaining, which is around Rs 160 crore, will be paid in instalments.
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“Only BYJU’s and Star India issues were discussed in the meeting, but that also took well over an hour. It was a serious matter involving millions of dollars; so naturally it took time,” a BCCI source told PTI.
BYJU’s, which was one of the sponsors of the FIFA World Cup, plans to lay off around 2,500 of its 50,000 workforce by March in its aim to become profitable.
Time for new media deal
It was also revealed in the meeting that Star India, which paid Rs 6,138.1 crore for India’s international and domestic cricket rights for the 2018-2023 period, has asked for a Rs 130-crore discount in the existing deal.
Some of the matches in the deal period had to be rescheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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“The issue was discussed at length, but the board is yet to take a final call on it,” the source added.
The development comes at a time when the BCCI is preparing to sell media rights for the next five years after the current deal expires in March. Considering the IPL media rights fetched a staggering Rs 48,390 crore, the BCCI is expecting another windfall.
(With agency inputs)
