The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced to find a new title sponsor for the Indian cricket team, as Dream11 has left the sponsorship.
This news is big for cricket fans, as Dream11’s name was associated with Indian cricket for the last few years.
But now due to the new rules of the government, Dream11 has had to step back. Let’s know what is the whole matter and what rules BCCI has made.
Why did Dream11 withdraw?
Dream11 took the title sponsorship for 2023-2026 for Rs 358 crore ($44 million) in 2023. But after the introduction of the ‘Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act 2025’, which bans real money gaming, Dream11 stopped its real money games. Due to this, they could no longer continue the sponsorship.
A senior BCCI officer told PTI,
“The BCCI fully understands one of our sponsorship partner’s plight. It is not their fault and unlike other issues of payment default, there won’t be any penalty levied on Dream11. This is a government rule and full compliance is required and in the current scenario, their business will be impacted.”
That is, BCCI did not give any penalty to Dream11, because this has happened due to government rules.
BCCI’s new plan
BCCI has now decided to invite bids for new sponsors. The board has made it clear that companies associated with real money gaming, cryptocurrency, tobacco, alcohol or things that “hurt public morals” cannot bid.
BCCI said, “Bidder, including any of its Group companies:
(i) should not be engaged in online money gaming, betting or gambling services or similar services in India or anywhere in the world;
(ii) should not provide any online money gaming, betting or gambling services or similar services to any Person in India; and
(iii) should not have any investment or ownership interest in any Person engaged in betting or gambling services in India.”
Apart from this, if some categories like sportswear (like Adidas), banks (like IDFC First Bank), cold drinks (like Campa Cola) and insurance (like SBI Life) are already with BCCI, then companies associated with them cannot bid.
What are the bidding conditions?
BCCI has made strict rules for the bidders. The company’s turnover or net worth for the last three years should be at least Rs 300 crore.
The last date for purchasing the bid document is 12 September 2025, and for submission is 16 September 2025. BCCI also made it clear that no company should try surrogate branding (i.e. bidding in someone else’s name).
At present, Dream11 and My11Circle together have given around Rs 1,000 crore to BCCI. Now finding a new sponsor is a challenge for BCCI, especially when Asia Cup 2025 is just a few days away.
