The July 20 invitation to tender for BCCI events also excludes online gaming, betting and fantasy sports, while requiring bidders to meet a Rs 100 crore financial threshold.
BCCI has opened bidding for title sponsor rights for its events from July 20, 2026, but the tender explicitly excludes companies tied directly or indirectly to cryptocurrency trading, crypto exchanges, Virtual Digital Assets (VDAs), Web3 and tokenised products or services. The new restriction extends the cricket board’s earlier stance on Team India sponsorship to the broader slate of BCCI events. The tender document can be purchased until August 4, 2026, with clarifications due by August 5 and bids to be submitted by August 13. It carries a non-refundable fee of Rs 1 lakh excluding Goods and Services Tax (GST), taking the price for Indian entities to Rs 1.18 lakh including GST, while foreign entities must pay $1,050. Even so, only entities registered in India are eligible to participate, and individuals, unincorporated entities, consortiums, joint ventures and joint bidders are barred. BCCI also shut out online money gaming, real-money gaming and fantasy sports businesses, as well as betting, gambling, odds, prediction and tipping services. The restrictions extend to alcohol, tobacco, pornography and products considered offensive to public morals. The board said surrogate bidding or the use of alternative names, identities, brands or logos to bypass those rules is prohibited. Eligible bidders must show an average audited annual turnover of at least Rs 100 crore over the previous three years or an average net worth of at least Rs 100 crore over the same period, with group company figures allowed for assessment. Bidders must also satisfy a “fit and proper person” test that may take into account criminal convictions, fraud, economic offences, conflicts of interest, wilful default status, integrity and reputation. Three segments are blocked because of existing sponsorship arrangements: athleisure, performance wear and sports equipment; tyres, tubes and flaps; and paints, waterproofing and wallpapers. Only the existing BCCI sponsor in each blocked segment can bid from that category, though the board reserved the right to add more restricted or blocked categories before the submission deadline. The move comes as India remains a leading crypto market by adoption even as regulation tightens. The article notes India has topped the Chainalysis Global Crypto Adoption Index for three consecutive years, while the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) recently estimated annual crypto inflows into India at $340 billion, or about 9% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP). India still lacks a comprehensive cryptocurrency law, but Section 115BBH of the Income Tax Act applies a 30% tax on VDA gains and Section 194S imposes 1% Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) on qualifying transfers. The report also highlights an apparent inconsistency: Gautam Gambhir, the head coach of the Indian men’s cricket team, continues to serve as brand ambassador for CoinDCX after taking the role in November 2024, even as BCCI bars crypto firms from event title sponsorship. Neither BCCI nor CoinDCX has publicly addressed that overlap, and the tender does not explain how endorsement deals involving board employees align with sponsor restrictions.