IPL: A league of vice at the heart of Indian cricket?

Last week, as the third series of the tournament came to an end, Lalit Modi, the IPL’s ringmaster, was suspended and Parliament adjourned amid uproar over a corruption scandal - alleging, among other things, Modi’s unpaid tax liabilities, kickbacks and even match-fixing. The scandal has engulfed politicians, business leaders and the country’s biggest sport.

The move effectively ended Modi’s three-year reign over a competition that has transformed the commercial face of cricket and established India as the new geographic centre of the sport.

The saga all began on Twitter, which acted as the battleground for a war of words. While opposition parties slammed the IPL format of the game, alleging that it was a “betting and gambling ring” where black money was being “white-washed,” union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said “appropriate action as per law” would be taken if any wrongdoing was found in the manner of funding.

Since its launch, the IPL has never been far from the headlines. When it was revealed that Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, actor Preity Zinta and Kingfisher tycoonVijay Mallya were among the serious bidders for the tournament, the league dominated the media.

The second season had even more stars and more controversy resulting in more unpaid, and sometimes unwanted, publicity.

Rumours about the IPL’s new guidelines for news broadcasters threatened to end the cosy relationship between organisers and media. And in January, the IPL drew attention for seeming to tacitly instruct all its franchises not to include Pakistani players in public auctions.

As much as it has helped Indian cricket to grow, the IPL has also at times made it look unplanned and disorganised. Whether advertisers and viewers remain loyal to the brand amid this latest scandal remains to be seen.

Brand health diagnosis

Piyush Pandey, chairman & creative director for South Asia at Ogilvy & Mather:
“The Indian Premier League is one of the most fantastic brands. Brands are not built by what they do; they are built by how people perceive them. And people in India love the IPL. Millions of people here follow the tournament.

Despite the recent controversy, the brand continues to exist. It is not going anywhere. Advertisers are attracted to the IPL by the involvement of the consumers, and consumers in India flock to stadiums to watch the IPL. There is no reason to believe people have anything against the brand. I was at the stadium last night and Bombay was rocking. I am hoping that, whatever the outcome to the current controversy, there is no knee jerk reaction from the public.

I am not in a position to talk about what is happening surround the IPL at the moment. The Government, the highest powers, the law of the land, are looking into things. They are trying to put things in order. I hope to God that this controversy doesn’t spoil the brand.

I am passionate about the IPL and I am passionate about cricket. I have been involved with the IPL since before its launch. The brand stands for magic. If it is regained it will be magical.”

Sam Balsara, chairman and managing director at Madison World:
“That the IPL has become the country’s top sporting event, of astronomical proportion, not in viewership terms, but in terms of the money that revolves around it, is a fact. Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.

We need to recognise that the master creator of IPL has created something that goes beyond cricket. He added something that is even more popular than cricket - Bollywood - and offered a recipe for instant gratification in a country where many are just beginning to have access to disposable income.

As a marketer I salute the man for reading the consumer and market right and putting together a product offering that met with instant success and that was reinvigorated and relaunched every year, to make it even more alluring. Could a committee have achieved the same result? I doubt it.

Does the end justify the means? Certainly not. The guilty must be punished to show to the world that India is a civilised nation, where the rule of law prevails. Will all this affect the viewer? I doubt it. Will it improve ratings? Maybe. Will it affect the finances of team owners and interests groups? Perhaps, yes. Will it make cricket less popular? Certainly not. I invite Media readers to be my guest at IPL-4.”

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This article was originally published in the 6 May 2010 issue of Media.