MxMIndia

Tag: Indian Super League

  • The way the sport was growing about a decade ago, football should have been a clear No 2, writes Shailesh Kapoor. But… read on

    Whistle Up The World Cup

     

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Shailesh KapoorWe are moved from one World Cup into another. Within a week of the T20 Cricket World Cup final, the FIFA World Cup kicked off in Qatar. So far, it’s been a fairly engaging tournament, though punctuated by four goalless draws on the way. There have already been two big upsets in the first four days, with fancied Argentina and Germany losing to Saudi Arabia and Japan respectively.

     

    The popularity of the sport of football rose in India about 10-15 years ago, as international leagues started getting popular, and a loyal (though niche) fan base started building around specific teams and players. Over the last five years though, the sport seems to have hit some sort of stagnation. In Ormax’s ‘We, The Sports Fans of India’ report, released in April 2022, football has 23.4 million fans in India, and ranks no. 4, just behind kabaddi (28.5 mn) and WWE/ wrestling (26.5 Mn). Cricket, of course, is the dominant leader, at 124.2 Mn.

     

    The way the sport was growing about a decade ago, football should have been a clear No 2, with about 35-40 millions fans, at the very least. One of the impeding factors has been that Indian Super League (ISL), founded in 2013, has failed to fire. The league continues to exist and even get some viewership. But it has not generated fandom for the sport, beyond a handful of states like West Bengal, Goa and Kerala, where the sport has always been big anyway.

     

    In contrast, kabaddi has seen huge build-up of fanbase, starting from virtually nothing, on the back of a vibrant and thriving league. It’s not very difficult to understand why Pro Kabaddi League has been a bigger success than ISL. With exposure to the best of international football, the quality at display in ISL looks mediocre in comparison. And there is no room for mediocre content in a world where we are inundated with options.

     

    The sport one starts watching in one’s teens is often the main sport one watches through the rest of their lives. What one plays (the few who do!) may evolve over the years, but the first choice to watch invariably doesn’t. Football was making inroads on this front, till a few years ago. A new generation of kids in the metro cities would find cricket too slow, and international football became their go-to sport.

     

    Since then, these kids have grown up to be in their 20s, and IPL has grown stronger with each passing year. The gap between cricket and other sports may only be widening now, I suspect.

     

    But that’s a thing of the future. For now, we have another three weeks of what is arguably the biggest global sporting spectacle, and at very friendly India timings too. Relish!

     

  • To celebrate its partnership with Kerala Blaster FC for the 7th season

    Ather Energy rolls out new digital campaign

    By Our Staff

     

    Ather Energy, the electric vehicle company, has rolled out a new digital campaign, ‘Kali Ini Electric’, to celebrate its partnership with Kerala Blaster FC for the 7th season of the Indian Super League (ISL). Through this campaign, Ather Energy aims to build recognition for their electric scooters in Kerala and establish a seamless connection between their flagship product – the Ather 450X – and the people of Kerala.

     

    Notes a communique: “The campaign played on the inherent love and passion the people of Kerala have for football and for their favourite sports teams. The campaign used a background voice-over in the style of the famed Malayalam commentator Shaiju Damodaran to showcase the beauty of an electric game – on the football pitch and while riding the Ather 450X electric scooter. The Ather 450X has seen a resounding response from consumers in Kerala, which is an important market for Ather Energy.”

     

    The campaign is conceptualised and executed by Stark Communications.

     

  • India does not have a strong sporting culture, and it is that much harder to build that in a one-sport nation

    India’s Sports Story: Looking beyond IPL

     

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    Shailesh KapoorAn unusual season of the Indian Premier League, held over two parts separated by six months, is concluding next Friday. Despite being held overseas, and hence no home stadia and home fans coming into play, it has been a fairly successful season, with the primetime matches ratings consistently well, with those featuring Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings or Royal Challengers Bangalore being a notch higher than those featuring the other teams. Add the streaming numbers to the TV viewership and IPL looks stronger than ever.

     

    But by now, that’s a known thing. The success of IPL, now in its 14th year, is not exactly breaking news. I remember how the 2011 season, coming on the heels of India’s Cricket World Cup victory, had performed below par. So much so that it created reasonable doubt in the minds of stakeholders if the IPL is losing its sheen.

     

    That’s unimaginable today. Even a choppy IPL season would be immune to that level of dip in viewership. It is now easy to predict what an IPL match will rate, if you know the teams involved and the time slot. The audience is not ‘testing’ IPL as an idea anymore. They have embraced it already. And some years ago.

     

    IPL is an annual fixture that has different kinds of importance for different people and businesses. It is a career opportunity for aspiring cricketers, a solid marketing platform for brands, and the ‘known devil’ for GECs, who no longer fret about what their content strategy during IPL should be. They simply replicate what they did the previous year, and for good reason too. There is no mystery left to unravel after all.

     

    And that brings me to a question that’s been bothering me for a while now: Are we satisfied with just one blockbuster sporting property in this huge country? A host of sporting leagues have been launched over the last decade, and none of them have achieved even a fraction of IPL’s success. Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) is the best of the lot, having resurrected a dying sport from a viewership perspective. But the numbers are not exactly ‘mass’, and it remains to be seen how the league performs when it is back later this year (or early next year) after a two-year hiatus.

     

    Indian Super League, an attempt at cashing in on the growth popularity of football among India’s urban teenage and youth population, has not grown stronger with time. And the other leagues have barely managed to survive. I suspect some of them may have died a silent death during the pandemic, and may never come back at all.

     

    Cricket itself, outside IPL, is not growing in viewership. The Olympics had great media visibility because of India’s best-ever performance, but very little numbers to show. I fear that we may have reached a point where except the IPL (and the Cricket World Cups, which are not annual fixtures anyway), we have a big hole in our sports viewership story.

     

    India does not have a strong sporting culture, and it is that much harder to build that in a one-sport nation. The broadcasters, especially Star, have done a fair bit, such as to bring up Kabaddi as a prominent option. But the road ahead remains a tough one even there.

     

    In 2025, will IPL still be the only sporting story India has to offer? Or is the next big idea round the corner, and we just don’t know it yet?

     

  • The agency will take charge of the mainline, digital and content creation duties for the brand

    Gozoop retains Mumbai City FC’s integrated marketing duties

    By A Correspondent

     

    Gozoop has retained the integrated marketing mandate for the Indian Super League (ISL) franchise Mumbai City FC for the third time. As part of the mandate, the agency will take charge of the mainline, digital and content creation duties for the brand.

     

    Commenting on the win, Ahmed Aftab Naqvi, Gozoop CEO & Co-founder said: “We have been helping top sports brands reach, engage and delight their fans across the world for a decade now with our best-in-class digital and creative capabilities. Throughout our association with Mumbai City FC, our focus has always been on pushing the boundaries and exceeding expectations to create a multi-dimensional plan for marketing the brand across new-age channels. We are looking forward to give our best to the team once again. Mumbai City FC is very special for us especially since we are based out of Mumbai. We have a team which specialises in sports and will be giving in their best to make this season a successful one in every way possible.”

     

    Added Indranil Das Blah, CEO of Mumbai City FC: “Gozoop’s understanding of our Team, category, passion for sports coupled with their understanding of the sports fans from Mumbai, made them the perfect partner for us. This is the third year of our association and we believe that our work will be able to better our relationship with fans even further across all touch points.”

     

     

  • The initial two matches of Chennaiyin FC during ISL 2016 will be an exciting teaser phase followed by the brand reveal in the finale rounds

    Himalaya inks new association with Chennayin FC of Indian Super League

    By A Correspondent

     

    Himalaya Men has announced an association with Chennaiyin FC of the Indian Super League for its ‘Men Hate Pimples Too’ campaign. It launched the campaign basis a consumer research insight that pimples affect men as well, leading to personal and social discomfort and their grooming needs have to be addressed.

     

    The campaign was activated with the collaboration of Himalaya Men with the Royal Challengers Bangalore during the Indian Premier League (IPL) and continued its journey with the Patna Pirates team during the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL).

     

    Further consolidating its sports association, the brand is all set to cheer for the new Chennaiyin FC during this year’s India Super League (ISL). The initial two matches of Chennaiyin FC during ISL 2016 will see a teaser followed by the brand reveal in the finale rounds.

     

    Commenting on the association, Ashwani Gandhi, Category Manager, Himalaya Men, said, “Sports is a perfect platform for us to connect with a young TG. Today, sports heroes are not just on-field performers, but also style icons, setting the trend for grooming and style. The Himalaya ‘pimple story’ debuted in 2016 with the RCB partnership, helping us communicate the message that ‘men hate pimples too’ and that a solution in the form of ‘Himalaya Men Pimple Clear Face Wash’, was at hand. After fruitful associations with IPL and PKL, we hope to continue our success run with the Chennaiyin FC tie-up. ISL is a great platform and we are delighted to be associated with the reigning champions!”

     

    “The face cleansing category is pegged at 1800 crore with the men’s segment contributing to 15% and growing at 30-35%. These are strong, impressive growth rates and was a natural progression for us to extend our leadership from the unisex face wash category to men’s grooming category, as men also deal with skin problems and require specialised solutions,”, said Rajesh Krishnamurthy, Business Head-Consumer Product Division, The Himalaya Drug Company.

     

    Commenting on the association, Chennaiyin FC co-owner Vita Dani said: “We are delighted to welcome Himalaya Men as the Co-Sponsor of Chennaiyin FC. We are proud to be associated with such a great brand and we look forward to building a strong relationship through the course of the season.”

     

  • The team is owned by Goan Football Club Pvt. Ltd. which consists of Jaydev Mody, Venugopal Dhoot and Virat Kohli

    Deltin Group of Hotels associates itself with FC Goa for ISL

    By A Correspondent

     

    FC Goa (also known as The Gaurs) competing in the Indian Super League, announced that the Deltin Group of Hotels will be the principal sponsor for all of FC Goa matches in the current season of the Indian Super League.

     

    The team is owned by Goan Football Club Pvt. Ltd. which consists of Jaydev Mody, Venugopal Dhoot and Virat Kohli. It represents Goa, the only state or union territory to declare football as its official sport. The logo represents Goa’s state animal the Gaur while the colours blue and orange symbolizes the Goan coastline and sunrise. The club play their home matches at the Fatorda Stadium in Margao. Brazilian footballer Zico has been the club’s Manager (Head Coach) since its inception while Former Brazilian skipper, World Cup winner and UEFA Champions League winner, Lucio has been the marquee player for the franchise from the second season of the ISL.

     

    The squad comprises a vibrant mix of youth and experience and has one of the biggest contingents of local players with names like Mandar Rao Dessai, Romeo Fernandes and Laxmikant Kattimani representing the club since the first season.

     

  • The 360 degree campaign planned by J. Walter Thompson Kolkata aims at galvanizing fans and unify them in their support of ATK

    JWT Cal scripts a winning campaign for ATK

    By A Correspondent

     

    Post winning the creative mandate of Atletico de Kolkata (ATK), the Indian Super League (ISL) team from Kolkata in June this year, it was tasked on J. Walter Thompson to make ATK a leader on the pitch and also among its fans.

     

    In order to achieve this objective, the campaign had to forge an emotional bond between those with a Kolkata connect and ATK. The 360 degree campaign planned by J. Walter Thompson Kolkata aims at galvanizing fans and unify them in their support of ATK.

     

    The communication task was to strike a chord with all individuals who have a connection with Kolkata, regardless of where they are presently located. The campaign had to appeal not only to supporters of the local city clubs [Mohun Bagan & East Bengal] but also to those who follow the English Premier League and La Liga.

     

    As Arjun Mukherjee, VP & Sr. Creative Director, J. Walter Thompson Kolkata says, “Football fanaticism runs in the veins of every Kolkatan. While the supporters of the traditional football clubs are ferociously divided, the idea was to bring them together on a common platform at the new temple of soccer – Atletico de Kolkata.”

     

    “The campaign aimed to bring alive the feverish emotions and unflinching support. More than winning or losing, the idea was to instill a sense of immense pride and also to get the new generation back inside the stadium. Behind every great soccer club there’s always an army of die-hard supporters, and when there are fans backing you, every impossible goal becomes possible”, adds Arjun.

     

    The campaign line – Your Team. Your Dream – evokes intense emotions among fans, igniting their passion, helping them identify themselves with their team and become an inseparable part of ATK’s journey.

     

    ISL is an annual football tournament played between teams from eight cities between October and November. By virtue of winning the inaugural edition last year, ATK are the defending champions.

     

  • The Indian Sports League aims to ignite a revolution and enable Indian football to thrive and perform at the highest level on the international stage

    Sachin, Saurav, Salman other biggies to star in football league

    By A Correspondent

     

    IMG Reliance and Star India promoted Indian Super League, under the aegis of All India Football Federation, reached a crucial junction on its path to rediscover Indian football, as it awarded eight League Partners across the country ahead of the proposed September-November 2014 inaugural season.

     

    Termed as an unrivalled footballing event, the Indian Super League being planned under the Football Sports Development Pvt Ltd., aims to ignite a revolution in the sport and ultimately enable Indian football to thrive and perform at the highest level on the international stage.

     

    Indian Super League’s proposal for ‘League Partners’ received an overwhelming response from the Business, Sports and Bollywood community, to own a team from the nine proposed cities in the contention. Four of the final eight cities – Delhi, Kochi, Guwahati and Bangalore – will find itself in the mainstream football map of the country, which is traditionally being dominated by Kolkata, Goa, Pune and Mumbai, through the high-profile professional Indian Super League.

     

    The winning bids comprise a good mix of corporates and celebrities including Sun Group for Bengaluru; Sameer Manchanda led Den Network for Delhi; Venugopal Dhoot (Videocon), Dattaraj Salgaocar and Shrinivas V. Dempo for Goa; John Abraham & Shillong Lajong for Guwahati; Sachin Tendulkar & PVP Ventures for Kochi; Sourav Ganguly, Harshavardhan Neotia, Atletico Madrid, Sanjeev Goenka, Utsav Parekh for Kolkata, Bollywood’s Ranbir Kapoor and Bimal Parekh for Mumbai and Salman Khan together with Kapil Wadhawan and Dheeraj Wadhawan of the Wadhawan Group for Pune.