New Delhi: A few weeks before the Asia Cup 2025, Dream 11, the official jersey sponsor of the Indian team, backed out of the sponsorship in the aftermath of the new Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill 2025. Under the bill, real money games are banned in India, and ultimately, Dream11 was forced to withdraw its sponsorship from Indian cricket.
Dream11 bought the sponsorship rights in 2023 for a whopping price of Rs 358 crore, which included Rs 3 crore per home match and Rs 1 crore for an away match.
Dream11’s exit has opened the doors for many giant players to secure a chance to sponsor the Indian cricket team. According to an NDTV report, Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited, Toyota Motor Corporation and a fintech start-up have expressed their interest in grabbing the sponsorship rights of the Indian team.
BCCI had prepared the Asia Cup 2025 jersey in advance, but now the jerseys will no longer be used in the multi-national event.
Big players in queue for sponsorship deal
The Board of Cricket Council of India (BCCI) will look to finalise the new sponsor before the Asia Cup 2025, as there is less chance that India will play without any principal sponsor on their jersey in the Asia.
BCCI will also be looking for a higher financial return compared to the Dream11 deal. Realiance Jio has partnered with many things in Indian cricket, and they will be the frontrunners to capture India’s sponsorship deal. Meanwhile, Toyota has already partnered with the Australian cricket team.
India in Asia Cup 2025
India will kick off their Asia Cup 2025 campaign on September 10 against the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Men in Blue are placed in Group A alongside arch-rivals Pakistan, UAE, and Oman.
India’s matches are on September 10, 14 and 19. The Super Four stage will commence on September 20. Suryakumar Yadav will lead the side, and Shubman Gill will serve as his deputy in the event.