With the Indian Premier League (IPL) in its catch, the World Sport Group (WSG) is sitting pretty. Even as it plans to cash in on the new T20 format that is set to change the cricket economy, the sports marketing company has also set its sights on the growing popularity of soccer and golf.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com's Ashwin Pinto, WSG South Asia CEO Venu Nair unveils the dynamics of the sports business.
Excerpts:
How far has World Sport Group progressed in India? We changed our football outlook to a five-year plan. We own all the rights and work closely with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), with whom we have been working since 1992. Our current contract runs till 2011. The fact that we have worked with them for so long to promote soccer across Asia speaks of the fact that we are long term players. |
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How have you grown the cricket business? During 2006, the BCCI's sponsorship rights were available. We paid Rs 1.8 billion for it. Prior to us, these rights were vested with corporates and not with a proper sports marketing company. |
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How is this deal with the BCCI working out? |
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Where are the opportunities for WSG in cricket other than the BCCI and IPL? |
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But aren't sports bodies working directly with broadcasters? Fifa, for instance, works very closely with sports marketing agency Infront. |
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WSG managed a coup with the IPL rights. What targets have you set? |
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Are these deals long term? |
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How does the IPL build in club loyalty and sustain viewership interest? |
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The IPL will face competition from other boards. England wants to start a league in 2010. Australia, South Africa and New Zealand want to start a joint league in 2011. How does this affect the IPL? |
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But when other leagues come up, won't some monies shift from IPL to them? In India sponsorship revenue is higher than ticketing revenue. In England it's the reverse. However, a time will come in India where ticketing revenue will grow. Hospitality is another area which, if developed properly, can be a solid, successful revenue stream. Soccer clubs in Spain and England make a huge line of revenue from this area. |
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If the revenue potential is so strong, then why are owners already selling stakes so soon? |
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Will Test cricket and ODIs lose some of their lustre as T20 comes up? You will have to put allocated monies on this new format and squeeze monies on the other two formats. Even from a viewer's experience how many takers are there for a Test Match! The purists are in a minority. Cricket is now more about entertainment. T20 has taken that window; you can watch a game in three hours. |
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The PCB got $140 million for its rights. So isn't there still value in the traditional formats? However, the acquisition costs have shot up. In advertising you may not see a corresponding incremental value as it could get diverted to T20. The escalation may not happen. |
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Is there a danger of some broadcasters going bust due to a huge escalation in rights fees? The mad race to get cricket rights has created a bubble that will eventually burst. For example, tennis went through this huge bubble a few years back. It also happened with soccer. Broadcasters who have bought rights at high rates will have to sit down with their books at the end of next year and strike out the red. Market forces will pull prices down as the high price cannot be sustained. As a sports marketing company, I can bid a certain amount but if it is not in touch with the reality, then I stand to lose. Sports bodies, however, have to realise that the value that sponsors attach to the older formats of the game will increasingly be less. A sports body, though, will not lose money as it will get transferred from one format of the game to the other. |
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Even the 2010 soccer World Cup rights went for a five-fold rise. Why? The awareness of global soccer icons due to the media coverage is also high. This is why premier tournaments are time bound. It has the carnival atmosphere. People follow certain teams. Once people watch it, advertisers also want to be in on the action. |
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You wanted to do a league around soccer with AIFF and use the franchise model. What happened to that? If the AIFF actually chalks out a 20-year plan to grow soccer at the grassroots level and has a realistic target, it can work. It is not about sending the team to the next World Cup. Cricket has been managed well at the administrative level. Cricket has also had periodic highs like winning the 1983 World Cup. This ensures that interest stays. After the 1950s, there has not been a high in soccer. Even followers of the sport do not have role models to look up to. If the AIFF comes up with a proper plan, then I am sure that there are enough corporates out there who are willing to invest. Bharti Airtel has committed Rs 100 crore. If it is spent in the right manner, it will give you results in 10-15 years. But thinking about reaching the 2010 World Cup final is a folly when you cannot reach a South Asian tournament. |
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How has your work with the AFC been progressing?
It has done well. The Asia Cup is held every four years. The AFC Champions League happens every two years. Everybody plays it. Australia has come through. We work with the Australian Football Association also on their leagues. Australia reaching the soccer World Cup was a culmination of many years of work. The sport has been revived as the body had a long term plan. |
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What activities does WSG do in Golf? Our aim is to take the prize money to $5 million given the fact that Golf is slowly growing in appeal in India. Our goal is to develop another multi-million dollar golf property in the first half of the year. We want to have two Indian Golf events that occupy a prominent position on the Asian Tour calendar. What is working in our favour is the fact that marketing managers today want to invest to reach different levels of the strata. |
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What are the plans in the player representation business? We manage Sachin Tendulkar. We have a five-year deal with him so that we can monetise his brand. Since Sachin has aged, we have moved away from brands that he was endorsing in the past. He is a family man; his core values are honesty, integrity and long-term commitment. That is why you have brands like Aviva, Royal Bank of Scotland and Canon. We are looking at brands that can go past his playing days. |
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Are you looking at more stars?
Yes, but a decision will only be taken after the second season of the IPL gets over. Player management is a tricky business. We have to be convinced that the player wants a long-term partnership rather than a short term money-making venture. |
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What impact will the economic downturn have on the business of sports marketing? We may have to look at our cost basis. We have to re-look at future acquisitions; we will have to work with experts to get a fix on what the economy might look like three or five years down the line before making another acquisition. Our buys will be made on the basis of market realities. |