“News website sponsors Pakistan-New Zealand series.”
PCB reverses decision on “news website” sponsorship for Pak-NZ series.”
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) had initially rejected proposals from several companies for sponsorship of the home series against New Zealand. However, the board officials later granted permission to “Dafa News” to sponsor the series, following the insistence of the company that holds the rights.
“PCB had always considered news websites as sponsors but recent surrogate advertising issue led to concerns. Banned Indian websites made minor changes to names and started advertising in Pakistan.”
During the final stages of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), Mohammad Rizwan, the captain of the Multan Sultans, wore a shirt with a logo that was printed with a font that resembled that of a news site. This sparked a buzz on social media, and the issue of surrogate advertising gained significant attention. The incident highlighted how banned Indian websites made minor changes to their names and started advertising in Pakistan. The PCB had always designated news websites as sponsors, but this incident brought up concerns about how surrogate advertising could be used to circumvent regulations.
“PCB initially released a sponsor list for Pak-NZ series without news websites, following the decision to avoid such agreements.”
“PCB had to permit “Dafa News” sponsorship as they had a contract with the company and backing out would result in heavy losses, sources say.”
Also read: Afridi: “Sialkot, Faisalabad new PSL teams.
The Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) officials are of the belief that none of the cricketers, including Mohammad Rizwan, will have an objection to the decision of granting sponsorship to “Dafa News.” They think that the decision will not face any opposition because logos cannot be displayed on shirts during international cricket matches. This assumption is based on the fact that as per the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) regulations, only the team logo, the kit manufacturer’s logo, and the sponsor’s logo are allowed to be displayed on the shirt.
“PCB takes measures to prevent surrogate advertising as logo similarity noted with legal gambling sponsor “Dafabet”.”
This is published in logicalbaat, on 10 April, 2023.
