Indian fantasy sports platform Dream11 has initiated talks with the country’s cricket board to exit its 3.58 billion rupee ($41 million) jersey sponsorship deal, Reuters yesterday said quoting an Economic Times report that cited people familiar with the matter.

The move followed the central or federal government ban on real-money online games, including fantasy sports, under the newly enacted Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, which threatens the survival of the popular gaming sector.

The law prohibits advertising, promotion and sponsorship of such platforms, making Dream11′s continued association with the Indian cricket team legally untenable, the Reuters report said.

Dream11 signed a three-year agreement with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2023 to feature its logo on the national team’s jerseys.

“These are watertight agreements and cannot be exited unilaterally. It will have to be a mutual decision since the law of the land doesn’t permit advertising of banned games,” one source said in the ET report.

(https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/sports/dream11-in-talks-with-bcci-to-exit-358-crore-jersey-sponsorship-after-gaming-ban/articleshow/123482279.cms?from=mdr)

Dream11 commands a valuation of $8 billion. The new Bill states that anyone who offers money games after the law comes into force could face a jail term of up to three years and a fine.

BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia did not immediately respond to a Reuters call and messages seeking confirmation of whether Dream11 has approached the board about ending their jersey sponsorship deal.

Saikia had told The Times of India newspaper on August 21 that the BCCI will not do anything that is not permitted by the government or by any law of the country. “The BCCI will not violate any of the laws enforced in the country. That’s very clear,” he was quoted as saying.

The development comes ahead of the Asia Cup, which begins on September 9, leaving the BCCI with limited time to secure a new sponsor.

Dream Sports Testing Financial App: Meanwhile, a PTI report from New Delhi yesterday stated that Dream11’s parent firm Dream Sports is testing a new app, Dream Money, to foray into the financial services sector, sources aware of the development said.

Dream Sports has been a major real-money gaming player in India, but it has to close its money-based games after the government banned all forms of online money games.

“Dream Money has been under pilot for the last few months. The platform has not been launched yet,” a source aware of the development said.

As per information available on Google Play Store, the app will offer gold purchase service on a daily basis, starting from Rs 10 per day and fixed deposits starting from Rs.1,000. The app has been published by a Dream Sports entity, Dreamsuite.

The website of DreamSuite shows that DreamSuite Finance will be launched soon to offer “seamless financial services”.

While Dream Sports has closed its online money-based games, it continues to operate sports experience and travel platform Dream Set Go, sports event ticketing and merchandise platform FanCode, game development unit Dream Game Studios and non-profit organisation Dream Sports Foundation.