Do we have to re-do the math of ‘Cricket Marketing’?

In the 90s, a common question during the Cricket World Cup season was, "Are you India or Pakistan?" We were patriotic back then too, but since Bangladesh was yet to play in the cup, our support would mainly go towards India or Pakistan, among others.

Then a huge change occurred. Bangladesh got the chance to play at the World Cup in 1999. Soon, we also got the coveted Test status. In a short time, cricket became more of a product than just a sport.

Since those heady days, lots of sponsors have come onboard, huge investment has been poured in and Bangladeshis began eating, sleeping and breathing cricket -- much like our counterparts in India. Cricket has united us, brought us joy and prestige. It has become our passion. Soon, it also became much more than just a game. As Bangladesh played, support for other teams either diminished or disappeared. When Bangladesh plays, that's who we root for. When it's India or Pakistan playing each other or someone else, we support the game of cricket.

Now let me take you to a completely different scenario. Many of us watch Bollywood/Hollywood movies, and do not watch Bangladeshi movies. Many of us watch EPL/La Liga, but not the football league of Bangladesh (though live telecast is available). Many of us support Brazil/Argentina though we also have a national football team. Many of us watch Zee Bangla/Star Jalsha though Bangladeshi TV channels also show daily soaps.

It seems nationality, or the patriotic zeal, takes a backseat when it comes to movies and sports, other than cricket. When it's cricket, however, we are "Bangladesh", regardless of the result and contrary to what the social media sentiment is after a loss.

So no wonder "cricket" is a big consideration for corporates and many branding/marketing activities are centred around cricket. We have seen a temporarily banned cricketer endorsing several top-notch brands, because the people are behind him.

Recently, we have seen a famous opener endorsing an e-commerce brand even though he was not in the team. Cricketers are promoting literally everything -- motorbike, cookies, telcos, banks, e-commerce, fin-tech, set-top-box, what not!

Has anyone asked "why"? The short answer is because of us, the mango people or aam janata. We watch cricket, we like cricketers and we like to see them. So they are everywhere. Some of us may prefer Shahrukh Khan over Zayed Khan, some of us may prefer Leonel Messi over Jamal Bhuiyan, but very few (or no one) will prefer Virat Kohli/Babar Azam for promoting a brand over Shakib Al Hasan.

This scenario didn't happen overnight. It took consistent performances and image-building over two decades to come to this point. People believe cricketers are capable, talented and hard-working persons, who fight for their nation. Many also think we are on the cusp of World Cup glory, with it being out of sight, but tantalisingly close at the same time. Meanwhile we keep supporting the team and thus, sponsors are assured that investing in cricket will give a worthy return.

All these great things are happening and we marketers seem to be enjoying the success. But what if this dream does not sustain?

If Bangladesh starts losing matches frequently, if the "lack of intent" issue comes up to the surface, if our fielders keep missing catches and if senior cricketers keep on telling critics to look at themselves in the mirror faces, people may lose interest or the passion may wane.

It was a momentous occasion for Bangladesh when a perfume company launched "N69" in the name of Nasir Hossain. Nasir was hugely popular at the time, which brought him the contract. Performance talks, man!

When Bangladesh was going to England to play in the Cricket World Cup 2019 (50-over format), a hype was created that we may even become the champions. Bangladesh started the campaign by beating the mighty South Africa, then defeated West Indies also.

But a demotivated Tigers took to the field against Pakistan, thus ending our campaign and coming 8th. Lots of controversy was raised on topics like Mash's retirement, Shoumya's form etc. Becoming 8th is supposed to be considered a poor performance, if we keep in mind Bangladesh's performance in the previous years.

And now the T20 World Cup 2021! Bangladesh started in a poor manner in the qualifying round. Catches were dropped, blame games started between the board and players and we regularly lost matches in awful manner. Already people have started getting frustrated; some are trolling on social media.

For the time being, it's about trolling, on social media and tea stalls. But it might be just the tip of the iceberg. Just imagine, if people give up watching matches, it's over! Brands will not sponsor any more, and the whole "Cricket-Marketing" will end. You cannot force people to watch games. Here, the Bangladesh Cricket Board is the marketer of "cricket" as a product to the advertisers/sponsors/promoters. They need to position the product "cricket" properly so that it attracts the advertisers. Otherwise, we may have to re-do the calculation we used to do about our return.

Faisal Mahmud is the Senior Marketing Manager of Bangladesh Edible Oil Limited.