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A week after Vivo's exit, the BCCI has advertised for its replacement as IPL title sponsors for the 2020 season spanning between August 18 and December 31 this year. Interested parties would need to buy the bid document by August 14 with the BCCI announcing the winning bid four days later. The BCCI has made it clear that only companies with an annual turnover of at least INR 300 crore (US$ 40 million approx.) would be eligible to bid for the IPL title sponsorship. The winning bid, the BCCI has pointed out, would not necessarily need to be the highest bidder and would depend on various other factors. "For the avoidance of doubt, it is clarified that BCCI shall not be obliged to award the Rights to the third party which indicates willingness to pay the highest fees in the course of discussions/ negotiations," BCCI said in a media release on Monday, signed by board secretary Jay Shah. "BCCI's decision in this regard will also depend on a number of other relevant factors. It includes, but is not limited to, the manner in which the third party intends to exploit the rights and the potential impact of the same on brand IPL as also the fan/ viewer experience, which will be examined and evaluated by BCCI in the course of discussions/negotiations with interested third parties who submit an EOI." Vivo had bagged the title sponsorship for two years initially in 2015, and retained the rights signing a five-year contract (2018-22), paying about $341 million. Last week, the BCCI said in a media release, spanning one line, that it had suspended the contract with Vivo only for the 2020 season. Although the BCCI did not lay out any reasoning, the political tensions between India and China over border dispute in June is understood to be the key reason behind Vivo's exit. The BCCI has not specified whether Vivo would make a comeback although some unconfirmed media reports suggested the Chinese handset manufacturer would retain the IPL title sponsorship for two years from 2021 season.
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