They sell the game in a telling manner

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI, SEPT. 17. They are the special people. They wield and enjoy considerable power and clout. They don't sell steel, cement or oil. The sell the high profile game of cricket. India's cricket administrators have come a long way since the early 1990s when the game appeared very much tradition and custom-bound.

Times have changed from the nascent stage, when the BCCI officials whispered in the winds the ``marketing of the product (cricket)'' concept, an idea straightaway taken out of the leaf of the South African book on the best way to promote and sell the game.

It was around the time (1993-94) that the BCCI caused a turnaround when it wiped out a budgeted deficit of Rs. 81 lakh plus into a surplus of Rs. 15 lakh plus. Since, it's been a story of `From Lakhs To Crores' for India's single richest sports body which has urged and negotiated hard with multinationals to sponsor home series and the national team, awarded broadcasting rights for a high sum, first to ESPN and then to Prasar Bharati and its administrators have cut a stylish impression.

In the last two years, the BCCI's single and biggest source of revenue has been Prasar Bharati (Doordarshan). It has signed a five-year agreement to the tune of Rs. 230 crores; a remittance of Rs. 46 crores for each of the five years. Prasar Bharati outbid Sony by a whopping Rs. 130 crores. The BCCI's second biggest partner is Pepsi. In fact, the American multinational which has been the title sponsor of home series for so many years, recently committed itself to a new sponsorship amount of Rs. 85 lakh each for both Test matches and One-day internationals.

Major sources

The BCCI's other major sources of income are from team sponsorship (it disburses 60 per cent to the players and retains the balance) and guarantee money from foreign countries. Megabucks are the name of the game in cricket and the three year contract the BCCI recently signed with TWI for team sponsorship (Sahara) is a clear indication of the marketing acumen of its functionaries. TWI has committed to pay Rs. 50 lakh for a Test match and Rs. 43 lakh plus for a One-day international. It's a steep rise from the amount it was receiving from the previous sponsor, ITC. The Kolkata corporate was paying Rs. 35 lakh for a Test match and Rs. 30 lakh for a One-day international.

The BCCI has made a surplus of Rs. 31 crores for the year 2000- 2001, a drop by close to Rs. 5 crores from the previous year. It would have been much less had it not been for an amount of Rs. 17. 50 crores it received as interim distribution from PILCOM (World Cup 1996). The main income was an amount of Rs. 46 crores from (Prasar Bharati). The other income for the year 2000- 2001 has been Rs. 13 crores (Surplus from tours) and Rs. 12.80 crores (interest on investments). The BCCI must have lost close to Rs. 6 crores for not playing in Toronto, Sharjah and in a series in Pakistan.

A big surplus every year is not the be all and end all for a handful in the BCCI. At the end of his Presidency, the pinnacle post he held for three years, Raj Singh Dungarpur said: ``I will not judge Indian cricket by the Board's balance sheet, but by the national team's performances. There is greater satisfaction in seeing the team winning matches.''

But the administrators who gave a new direction to the financial aspect of the game in the early 90s have not lost the enthusiasm and energy to raise more money in order to subsidise almost all the activities of the member units. The BCCI has distributed over Rs. 60 crores - a high percentage of the TV Rights money it received from the official broadcaster - as subvention money to member units in the last two years. It has categorised subvention money as expenditure on cricketing activities.

From a turnaround profit of Rs. 15 lakh in 1993-94, there was a high of Rs. 23 crores in 1995-96. This was essentially because of the money the BCCI received from PILCOM (World Cup 96). It touched a new high of Rs. 36 crores in 1999- 2000. It was again because of the 1999 World Cup in England. But two years later (in 2003), the BCCI is expected to receive an amount close to Rs. 90 crores as World Cup guarantee money from the International Cricket Council.

The administrators who have been around for many years have played their part in augmenting the finances of the BCCI. There is no doubt that the new faces, as they emerge in the BCCI, will strive to keep its coffers overflowing.

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