Beyond the Jersey: A Deep Dive into Merchandising Practices of Selected IPL Teams

Abstract

Sports merchandising is one of the powerful branding strategies for sports organisations all over the world. Sports merchandising includes creation and distribution of items related with sports, sports events and athletes. Sports merchandising helps fans to connect emotionally and create a loyal sports community. It also consistently aims for new revenue streams with enhanced fan engagement. Football, basketball, baseball, cricket, etc. are most played and watched sports around the world. These sports have created most successful sports clubs and leagues. In India, Indian Premier League (IPL) is the most watched and longest going sports league. Indian Premier League (IPL) is also the biggest and most successful cricket league in the world. It has the largest fan base in India and abroad, too. Its franchises have successfully implemented merchandising strategy since 2008, its first IPL season. In the present research, content analysis was done to understand merchandising strategies of four IPL franchises namely CSK, GT, KKR and MI. Total 120 newspaper articles were taken to analyse merchandising practices and strategies of respective IPL franchises. Apart from the analysis of merchandising strategy, opportunities and challenges faced by the franchises were also thoroughly researched. The study has identified some common practices and some unique and innovative practices adopted by each selected franchise.