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May 10th, 2021

Hacked By Fanny

Virat Kohli, a name that today not only resonates in the ears of Indian sports fans, but of fans across the world. With the IPL going on, Kohli is one of the most visible faces on television with more than 17 brands in his kitty. Ok It is in the early 2000’s, during the era of Sachin Tendulkar, brands started looking at him as their ambassador and brought him on board. Since that period, brand endorsement deals for cricketers have grown exponentially. Cricket started to stake claim across a domain which was and is still dominated by Bollywood celebrities. However, with the advent of the IPL and cricketers like MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli establishing a global presence for themselves, the brands have over time started to tilt in favour of cricketers as well. Virat Kohli often known as ‘the run and the record machine,’ retains his top position for the fourth time in a row in Duff & Phelps’ ranking with a brand value of $237.7 million in 2020. In the brand universe, he has beaten the Khans and left Bollywood far behind. He is the sole athlete on the top 10 list this year. Virat Kohli is currently one of the highest paid athletes if not the highest paid in India. Brands over time have been flocking to him to sign him as their ambassador. Given his mass fan base both in stadiums and on digital platforms, Kohli most certainly draws maximum visibility for brands giving them the requisite mileage they need. Though Kohli has always amazed audiences with his professional laurels and performances, that’s not the only special thing about him, his personal life has also always been in the limelight. Be it his strict fitness regime or his ‘family man’ image, many brands have associated with Kohli to capitalize on the perception he has created over the years. Over the years he has created a fitness movement wherein extreme importance has been placed on the need and importance of maintaining a healthy lifestyle for not only sportspersons but for individuals all across the country. This has largely helped in sports, fitness and nutrition brands turning to Kohli for promoting their products and services. Kohli represents brands across industries. Some notable endorsement deals signed by Virat Kohli include Great Learning, iQOO, Lafarge, Max Life Insurance and Vizecare. Additionally, he has been endorsing brands like Colgate, Google, Hero, Puma, Vicks, Manyavar, MRF Tyres, Mobile Premier League (MPL), etc. Kohli’s social media following increased by 46.3% from 112.8 million in 2019 to 165.0 million in 2020. He has been engaging with his fans frequently through live sessions, posts, reels, etc. which only builds and strengthens his digital presence. As per data from Hyper Auditor, his quality audience has increased by 66.6 percent. It has risen from 41.9 million in 2019 to 69.8 million in 2020. For the past few years many have linked Kohli’s brand image and value to that of the performance of the Royal Challenger’s Bangalore. A large portion of RCB’s ability to generate sponsor interests is due to their association with Virat Kohli. While one can agree that brands chase numbers, Kohli’s brand value may not be affected by the decrease in RCB’s value. His brand image, reliability and fan following continues to remain strong and the same trend is expected going forward. With cricketers starting to make their mark in the brand universe, it is only fair to say that Kohli will remain on top of the list as the most preferred brand ambassador at least among Indian athletes, and his brand value is only expected to increase just as much as the runs he scores on field for his team and country.