Several firms are now seeing the increasing benefit of non-Cricket sports: Suhail Chandhok

U Mumba, a franchise renowned for its formidable presence in the Pro Kabaddi League, has strategically expanded its sports portfolio by entering the chess arena, an intellectual sport with deep roots in Indian culture. The move aligns with the burgeoning popularity of chess both in India and globally, marked by recent achievements such as Gukesh’s success at The Candidates. U Mumba has incorporated top Indian chess icons like Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, and Vidit Gujrati into its team – the upGrad Mumba Masters – emphasizing the franchise’s commitment to nurturing intellectual as well as physical sports. This initiative mirrors the broader trend of the diversification and commercialization of sports in India, propelled by significant market potential and increasing global interest.

In conversation with Adgully, Suhail Chandhok, CEO, U Mumba, delves into various facets of the franchise’s growth and broader sports development in India. From the origins and international growth of kabaddi, bolstered by initiatives like Pro Kabaddi and the Kabaddi World Cup, to the impact of government programs like Khelo India in boosting youth participation in sports.

Could you provide insights into the strategic planning and objectives behind U Mumba’s expansion into the chess arena?

In many ways, every day of our lives includes making strategic moves, just as on a Chess board, and Chess is part of India’s contribution to the world. From 1,500 years ago when it was a game, to a few days ago when Gukesh conquered The Candidates, India continues to be a powerhouse in the sport. As a franchise, after the success on the Mat of Pro Kabaddi to the Tables of Ultimate Table Tennis (UTT), a move to a Chess Board and a sport of the mind seemed a very strong choice, especially given the rise of Chess across India and the globe today with an estimated 605 million players and strong interest from the youth population too. The global chess market was valued at $2,191.51 million in 2022 and is expected to grow to $2,706.68 million by 2028 and for us at the upGrad Mumba Masters to have India’s icons in Koneru Humpy, Harika and Vidit Gujrati as part of our squad has been a privilege and a delight.

Given U Mumba's origins in kabaddi, could you discuss the evolution of homegrown sports into international competitions?

While Chess is seen as one of India's contributions to the world, the ressurection of Kabaddi is one of the greatest stories in the sporting ecosystem of our country and having been on both sides of the fence from a Broadcaster from Day 1 in 2014 to a CEO now in 2024, I can say with confidence that the sport has truly changed not just the lives of individuals but of entire communities and towns that now believe in the power of Sport. With the inclusion of International players in Pro Kabaddi and also with events like the Kabaddi World Cup in 2016, we have seen India's own sport go global and the fact that Iran handed India our first ever defeat in Asian Games history in 2018 tells you that the sport is growing beyond our shores with close to 40 nations now playing the sport. I do think that there is plenty of room for growth however and perhaps having more teams and coaches working with growing Kabaddi nations could speed up the evolution of the sport and help with the standard of Kabaddi across other nations.

Could you discuss the impact of initiatives like Khelo India on emphasizing the importance of sports and inspiring youth participation in athletic activities?

Initiatives like Khelo India or the Yuva Kabaddi Series have been ideal pathways for young talent in our country, who would otherwise remain hidden, to showcase their skills on public platforms and take large steps towards earning a livelihood through sport. For instance, several players including more than 90 players from the Yuva Kabaddi Series, have made the jump to Pro Kabaddi and are currently earning a minimum of Rs. 8-10L, all the way to a whopping 96Lakhs in the case of Ashu Malik, which serves as inspiration to several others to believe in the dream of being a professional sportsperson. If we are to take positive steps towards being a sporting nation, then it has to start with opportunities to impress for the youth of our nation, where they are given a platform to unearth diamonds in the rough.

In the context of non-cricket sports, could you elaborate on the sponsorship dynamics?

While Cricket's footprint will always have a tremendous impact when it comes to Sponsorship, several firms are now seeing the increasing benefit of non-Cricket sports, and in particular the likes of Kabaddi which is firmly India's 2nd most watched sports League. Pro Kabaddi has a higher average integrated cost : benefit of 1 : 17 for sponsors, which is double the industry standard, with a high percentage of female viewership and an ability for brands to access a massive audience across "Naya Bharat" in Tier 2 & 3 towns too.

How can brands maximize their partnership with U Mumba to their advantage?

Maharashtra has always been one of the hotbeds of Kabaddi in the country and from the outset, the fanfare for the sport and for U Mumba has been incredible to see. Too add to that, the tremendous reach & ratings (closest to IPL at a fraction of the cost with Maharashtra being a key viewership market) provides the perfect stage for sponsors to garner consistent and intense visibility over 3 months, enabling strong brand recall, resonance and impact. U Mumba last season became the first team in the history of PKL to win 100 matches, but while results are not always guaranteed, we try to give back to our sponsors in various ways including being the first team in history with a jersey launch in partnership with Meta and Vicky Kaushal last season and also continue to create several opportunities for brands to leverage the U Mumba brand and our networks to reach their target audience. Given our personal history with the Sports & Media world, we certainly try to go our of our way to personalize the experience for our partners whether it be in terms of social media & digital campaigns or on-ground activations and visibility from other dedicated marketing activities through the season.

What are your aspirations for the future of the U Mumba franchise?

My aspirations for the future of U Mumba is to build on the success of the past but to believe in our process of steadily creating a pool of young talent that believe in the ethos of the team and that remains with the team going forward as we look play an aggressive brand of Kabaddi. It's often hard to trust that process as success takes longer, but with the backing of Mr. Screwvala who is a big believer in the youth of our Nation, we are hoping to unearth and develop more talent that will serve U Mumba and Indian Kabaddi for years to come. Mumbai is city as a melting pot of talent from across the country, regardless of the industry and we would love for that to reflect in our team as well to attract the best talent from across the country and give them a positive environment to grow. One of our short-term goals is to bring stability to the squad from all departments and hopefully that in itself will deliver positive results that we and our fans want from our players in Season 11.

Are there any additional sports that U Mumba plans to explore in the near future? What does the investment and return on investment (ROI) look like for franchises across various sports?

We are certainly exploring additional opportunities constantly in a sporting ecosystem that is evolving by the day in India, but the right opportunities must also come with the right commercial viability as not every League or sport can strike gold like IPL or PKL has done, and that is something that many league promoters often overvalue, even with its founding franchises. We do want to also develop more youth talent at the grassroots level in the sports we are already invested in and will no doubt have our hands full in the second half of 2024 with UTT, Global Chess League and Pro Kabaddi League essentially feeding into each other through a packed calendar of Sport.

Pro Kabaddi turned profitable for the founding franchises pretty early on and is certainly very appealing for brands today given the consistent reach and avenues to Naya Bharat, but there is still work to be done in unlocking true value for the sport in terms of commercialisation, given the viewership and potential of the sport, which will in turn encourage teams to invest more into the Kabaddi ecosystem as a whole. Chess is also extremely exciting with 80+ grandmasters from India at the moment and we have seen very early interest from highly reputed brands to engage with us and the sport, especially given the enormous but targeted audience that exists within the Chess world. Our paddlers too from the world of Table Tennis have created history over the last 12 months and the professionalism of the UTT League offers brands fantastic value and opportunities to come in early in what will be an exciting Olympic year for India on the TT tables too.