"The combination of professionalism and being a winning side ensures that we bring high value to our sponsor association" - Supratik Sen, CEO - U Mumba

With just a little more than two weeks to go for the fifth season of the Star Sports Vivo Pro Kabaddi, CEO of U Mumba Supratik Sen shares his insights on the business aspects of running the team. Supratik speaks about sponsorship, operations and benefits of an extended season ahead of  the fifth edition of the league. Transcript below:

On U Mumba having a stronger sponsorship bargaining power

Our aim has always been to be a professionally run and consistently performing side, and having done that across 4 previous seasons of the Pro Kabaddi League, I do consider ourselves amongst one of the top Kabaddi teams. We also have been Champions in Season Two and finalists twice, which makes us a winning side.

The combination of professionalism and being a winning side through previous seasons, ensures that we bring high value to our sponsor association.

On operational advantages of an extended season

Any evolved league in the world, runs between 6 to 10 months and this extended leagues is  a positive development for the team and the players. But the extended league also has us developing  a new  strategy for the increased number of games, while continuing to pursuing excellence while also accommodating for player and team fatigue.

On viewership of a lengthened season

In 2016 we had two Pro Kabaddi seasons and through that year  there no was dip in interest in the sport, as seen by TV ratings and ticket sales.

Every prominent global sporting league is played across 6 to 10 months and we have noticed an appetite for the sport and don’t see viewer and fan fatigue at all. In fact we see an extended seasons allowing us to create an  expanded viewer base and build fan loyalty.

On U Mumba's approach this season

As a team, we’ve always tried to take a different approach to everything we do. This season too is no different in terms of our approach. Our pre-season training camp kicked off in Dehradun closer to Mussoorie in the first week of June. This camp site is an ideal location for a training boot camp as it allows for altitude training. Being cut-off from the city helps keep the focus completely on training

On financial sustainability of Pro Kabaddi

Given how the league is structured, it allowed for franchises to be financially sustainable right from season 2. And the continuous growth of the league in terms of viewership has definitely ensured that sponsors too are continuing to stay invested in the sport – with more brands/categories also looking to invest in Kabaddi. A longer season will also be a boost for franchises as it increases potential for teams to increase their on all revenue fronts or revenue buckets.