New Delhi, Feb. 4: Four Indian players including Sachin Tendulkar met Board of Control for Cricket in India president Shashank Mahohar to to seek clarification on the International Cricket Council’s memo to players warning them against indulging in ambush marketing.
The world body has stated that all cricketers participating in the World Cup should not be seen endorsing products other than the official sponsors in a way that makes references to the event itself.
ICC had sent a list of do’s and dont’s to players and to member boards on October 26 last year. Pepsico , LG Electronics, Hero Honda Motors and Reliance Communications — the four main sponsors — along with Castrol, Reebok India, Emirates, Yahoo and Moneygram have collectively spent around `1,200 crore on sponsorship rights and advertising.
While most of the international players remain unaffected, many of the top Indian cricketers endorse rival brands either individually or through their IPL franchise. India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni has a deal with telecom major Aircel while while Reliance Mobile is an official World Cup sponsor.
Tendulkar has to be the face to Zandu Balm since the company is the sponsor of his IPL team. ICC has said the the players are permitted to appear in endorsements in their personal capacity wearing casual clothes or cricket whites.