West Indies Cricket Board at loggerheads with sponsor (9 Jan 1998)
SPONSOR FLYING
09-Jan-1998
January 09 1998 -
SPONSOR FLYING?
by Tony Cozier
ALREADY without a backer for this yearÕs regional first-class
tournament, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has found itself
at loggerheads with its major sponsor for overseas tours.
At issue is sponsorship of the West Indies team for the 1999 World
Cup in England and the tour of England the following year.
The UB Group, the giant Indian corporation which has supported the
West Indies on overseas tours since the 1995 Champions Trophy in
Sharjah through its Kingfisher beer and mineral water, has charged
the WICB with trying to exclude it in favour of another sponsor.
Acknowledging that the WICB is keen to finalise agreements for
both tours, marketing director Chris Dehring claimed that
Kingfisher have been unable to finalise the deal and there are
other firm offers on the table.
UB Group chairman Vijay Mallya maintained that Kingfisher has a
Òfirst right of refusalÓ on sponsorship for future overseas tours
by the West Indies Õtil the year 2000 and accused the WICB of
trying to back out of it. He said it was Ònot willing to alter,
dilute or surrenderÓ the right.
It sponsored the West Indies team on its recent tours of Pakistan
and Sharjah and will do so on the full tour to South Africa later
this year. In addition to the basic, undisclosed sum, it has put
up incentive awards for players and provides team outfits.
In letters to WICB president Pat Rousseau and marketing committee
chairman Teddy Griffith, Mallya objected to what he termed
pressure being put on the UB Group through the imposition of
deadlines as much as 18 months prior to the World Cup.
He explained that UB was negotiating with the England Cricket
Board, the organisers, for sponsorship of the World Cup in the
beer category and could not conclude their agreement with the West
Indies until that is settled.
ÒSince category sponsorship will guarantee exclusivity, whether we
can sponsor the West Indies or not will depend on us being
successful in our bid,Ó Mallya said.
ÒWe are confident we will be successful and have asked the WICB to
extend their deadline accordingly til January 30 but they have
stated that they are proceeding to conclude arrangements with
another party.Ó
He called the WICB attitude Òunnecessarily harsh and
compromisingÓ.
Dehring noted UBÕs position but said they should appreciate that
the WICB Òcould not continue holding on, holding onÓ.
ÒWe have other firm offers on the table and we cant afford to be
caught out as we were in Australia (in 1996-97),Ó Dehring said.
ÒWe lost out heavily there when one of AustraliaÕs main sponsors,
Carlton and United Brewery, objected to the clash with
Kingfisher.Ó
Under International Cricket Council regulations, the home teamÕs
sponsor takes precedence in any such conflict, Dehring explained.
England have been prevented from promoting their sponsor,
Vodafone, the mobile telephone company, because West Indies
cricket is sponsored by Cable & Wireless, a rival outfit.
In his letters to Rousseau and Griffith, Mallya appealed for Òfair
and equitable treatment in return for all the support it (UB) has
rendered through sponsorship of the West Indies teamÓ.
ÒThe erratic performance of the team and the often reported lack
of leadership and team spirit has not dampened our enthusiasm to
continue our support,Ó he added.
Source:: The Nation, Barbados