In an exclusive interview with Storyboard18, Raja Rajamannar talks about sponsoring cricket and how to break the advertising clutter
Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer and president—healthcare business, Mastercard
Mastercard on Monday signed an agreement with The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), replacing Paytm to become the title sponsor of all international cricket matches (both women and men) held on home ground. It is believed that the rights have been reassigned at the same price of Rs 3.8 crore per match. Alongside international matches, Mastercard will also sponsor domestic cricket tournaments including the Irani Trophy, Duleep Trophy, and Ranji Trophy, organised by the BCCI and also all junior cricket (under-19 and under-23) matches held in India.
The BCCI sponsorship is the latest in line with marquee global properties that Mastercard is associated with including UEFA Champions League, the Grammys, and the Cannes Films Festival. The company is also associated with the Australian and French Open tennis tournaments. In India, Mastercard signed the former Indian cricket captain MS Dhoni as its endorser four years ago.
In an exclusive conversation with Storyboard18, Raja Rajamannar, chief marketing and communications officer, and president—healthcare business, Mastercard, talks about the BCCI deal, penetrating deep in India through sports and breaking the advertising clutter.
Edited excerpts.
Q. What kind of value addition does the BCCI agreement bring to Mastercard?