An advertising industry executive said that the Saudi Tourism Authority (STA) has become one of the official partners of the Indian Premier League for the 2023 season, replacing edtech company Unacademy.

STA is the second Saudi entity to sponsor the IPL, after Saudi Aramco, which is the sole sponsor of the Orange Cap and Purple Cap, which are awarded to the run-scorer and wicket-taker respectively in each season. An executive said the bail amount would be the same as what Unacademy was paying.

For 74 matches, "each of the IPL's six official partners pays an average of Rs 60 crores.

Emails to the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI) and STA remained unanswered as of press time on Thursday.

The Saudi agency has identified India as a key market to boost inbound tourism. It will do aggressive marketing campaigns in India to get more visibility and IPL sponsorship is part of that.

As part of his plans to cut advertising spending, Unacademy founder Gaurav Mongal announced in July that the company would no longer sponsor the IPL in 2023.

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