Airtel Switches from Champions League Twenty20 to Formula One Grand Prix of India

It is interesting how the changing winds dictate business. It should be of concern that the rising status of Formula One, with the Grand Prix coming to India, has already seen the title sponsor shifting gears.

Champions League Twenty20

The Champions League Twenty20 2011 hit the headlines recently because they lost their title sponsors, Bharti Airtel, who had been associated with the previous editions since the inception of the CLT20. The reason then cited was the lack of encouraging viewership for the Twenty20 league that incorporates competition between Twenty20 champions from across the various countries. Given that the Champions League Twenty20 includes foreign domestic teams that are not familiar with the large contingent of Indian cricket spectators, there was bound to be a degree of variation in terms of viewership.

However, the sponsors did not see the merit in continuing on their original five year deal and reneged. Fortunately cricket in India still holds enough clout to draw in sponsors like bees to honey. The exit of Airtel saw the organizers in talks with Nokia who eventually stepped in as the sponsors.

And it is rather interesting that in a matter of days, it emerges that Bharti Airtel has invested in the Formula One race to be held for the first time in India. The Indian version will now be known as the Airtel Grand Prix of India slated for the 30th of October. Airtel is naturally pumped up about their new association given that Formula One enjoys a good following in India and the numbers have only risen with the likes of Narain Karthikeyan and Karun Chandok becoming household names and also, with the emergence of Force India, the Formula One team that is the baby of Vijay Mallya who is also the IPL franchisee for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Citing the opportunity to milk the novelty of a brand new venture and to build brand association, the sponsors have shifted away from cricket which is rare in India. Although there is no malice in what Airtel have done, the shift is certainly something to take note of simply because for one, it puts the Champions League Twenty20 under scrutiny over its viability which has been negated by the quick new sponsorship and secondly, as stated previously, it marks a change of thought process for the sponsors to change from the traditional bankable commodity that is cricket to a new fascination in the form of the Formula One racing coming to India. Mainstream cricket will still pose a hurdle for Formula One to get sole attention in India but perhaps it is the format of the Champions League Twenty20 that has failed to find resonance with the sponsor.

While Formula One has had its ardent fans in India dating back more than a decade, that international racing comes to India is the new adrenaline rush, one that is slowly seeing a shift in spectator interest, particularly more so since they have chewed and spat out the IPL and with India being forced to give up their no.1 Test team status by a supremely determined and trained England. With cricket have lost its charm recently, albeit temporarily, the focus has shifted to the one event that will be the cynosure of eyes around the world with the Indian Formula One race or the Indian Grand Prix was added on Formula One racing’s international calendar for 2011.

Set to become a regular fixture with the racing body seeing the potential for commercial sustenance, the race is going to set precedents which is perhaps the sponsor saw to substitute flagging interests with an event that is bound to grab eyeballs if only for the new thrill that it represents for racing fans in India who continue to grow in numbers.