Experts Speak: How can Sunil Chhetri strike more goals in the brand world?

Sunil Chhetri, the striker who made his debut for the Indian National Football Team in 2005 against Pakistan, is emerging as a true icon in the world of sports. Chhetri is now Asia’s highest active goalscorer as he approaches a landmark moment of 100 international goals. Despite his talent and dedication to the game, it took time for brands to recognise and capitalise on his market potential. 

Sports marketing has traditionally focused heavily on cricket, sidelining other sports such as football and even India's national sport, hockey. 

Even during the ongoing Asian Football Confederation Asian Cup, a noticeable gap existed in brand creatives, overlooking a huge marketing opportunity. This stands in contrast to every Indian cricket match, where a plethora of brand posts rally behind the team, cheering for the win.

Drawing another parallel with cricket, Shubman Gill, an emerging player in Indian cricket, secured his first brand collaboration with CEAT Tyres in April 2018, just a year after his debut in 2017. However, for Chhetri, his breakthrough came twelve years later, in 2018, when Nike collaborated with him. Subsequently, in 2019, the global sportswear giant PUMA signed a lucrative three-year deal with Chhetri, marking a significant milestone in his brand endorsements.

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The cricket-centric marketing approach speeds up recognition and endorsements for players like Gill. In contrast, Chhetri's journey involved overcoming challenges to gain attention from brands, emphasising the need for diversification in sports marketing strategies.

However, once the spotlight was on him, a plethora of brands, including industry giants like PUMA, recognised the immense value he brought to the table. 

Industry experts discuss the advantages that brands gain by associating with Chhetri, along with the potential challenges they might encounter on an industry level while collaborating.

A global icon in the making

Sunil Chhetri, excelling in school football, never envisioned a career in the sport but saw it as a gateway to a reputable college and continued education. But at 16, Chhetri was called up to the Indian team for the Asian School Championships in 2001 while pursuing 12th grade in New Delhi. Mohun Bagan, a football club, spotted his talent and signed him.

Debuting for the senior Indian football team in 2005, Chhetri marked his entry with a goal against Pakistan. His breakthrough came in the 2007 Nehru Cup, where his four goals led India to victory after a decade.

Chhetri maintained his performance in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup, scoring four goals, including a hat-trick in the final. This triumph established him as the face of Indian football.

His journey reached new heights when he captained the national team in the 2011 AFC Asian Cup and led India to victory in the 2012 Nehru Cup. 

Chhetri is currently the third-highest goal-scorer among active players in international matches, only behind Portuguese player Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi of Argentina.

As per a media report, after his South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) win, brands have been lined up to collaborate with him, and his endorsement fee is over INR 1 crore and keeps fluctuating depending on the deal tenure.

According to Mazhar Gadiwala, Vice President, Togglehead Sports, Chhetri's cost is relatively lower for his stature as compared to a lot of international cricketers.

Social Media Clout

Beyond these significant accomplishments, Sunil Chhetri's influence extends to the digital sphere, where his current Instagram following stands at 7.3 million, making this extensive follower base a key factor in securing brand deals.

Gadiwala stated that Chhetri’s Instagram posts have seen an engagement rate of 9.01% over the last 6 months and he holds a Genuine Audience Percentage (GAP) Score of 83.75%, which signifies a healthy authentic following on social media. 

There is no reason why brands would not wish to partner with Chhetri after seeing such numbers in a world today that is so driven by algorithms and numbers. Historically, we have identified that his success rate for sponsored posts is relatively higher than a lot of other Indian sportspersons (28% as compared to the average of 7%-14%).

He believes that Chhetri’s humility is a major contributor to his authentic fan following. If one had to draw comparisons, Gadiwala said, Chhetri is the M.S. Dhoni of Indian football. 

He highlighted that Chhetri's primary audience comprises males aged between 18-34 years, constituting nearly 80% of his total following. Particularly, his fan base is strong among the youth, with 31% falling within the 18-24 years range

Furthermore, sharing more data, Gadiwala said, “His average engagement on Instagram stands at around 660.3K, average reel plays are at 4.4 million, and average comments at 1.1K. Chhetri also manages to garner likes from those who do not follow his page, with that number standing at almost 800K.

Sahil Chopra, Founder & CEO of, iCubesWire highlighted that as a known figure in football, Sunil Chhetri maintains positive public sentiment, and the player’s widespread influence in the sports world makes him a well-liked figure, especially among young football enthusiasts. 

He believes that Chhetri’s brand equity can be credited to his hard work and fame. 

Chopra said, “He's admired for his stable performance on the ground. This performance has won him praises and a firm standing in sports. With this mix of career wins and attraction, he's a remarkable choice for brand collaborations.”

Chhetri’s performance on field, his diverse fan follower base, and the engagement on his social media, are some of the reasons why Chhetri’s brand portfolio now includes notable names like Flipkart, Acer India, Duroflex, Pintola, ACwO, and Fire-Boltt, reflecting the diverse range of endorsements that align with his image and values. 

As part of these brand deals, Sunil Chhetri has been part of various brand campaigns, including Duroflex’s 'World Sleep Day'. In this campaign, the brand transformed its Instagram handle into 'India’s Sleepiest Page' featuring intentionally unexciting content with three films showing Chhetri engaged in mundane tasks. He was seen discussing the impact of night-time scrolling on sleep quality. Collaborating with him, the brand utilised his influence to promote the importance of good sleep.

Sharing the reason why Duroflex decided to collaborate with Chhetri, Mohanraj Jagannivasan, CEO - Consumer Business, Duroflex, said, it was because he leads by example. 

He said, “Chhetri is well known for his healthy lifestyle and is quite unafraid of talking about the importance of good sleep on public forums. In an interview he mentioned how he didn't even take his cellphone to his bedroom. These qualities of his helped us drive the message a lot more effectively and organically.”

As per Jagannivasan, the brand saw a 7.5% spike in its social media following and an 18% increase in brand searches on Google.

Another campaign that Sunil Chhetri was a part of was ACwO. In ACwO's campaign, Sunil Chhetri shared a message with the audience, recounting how some have dismissed sports as wasting time and an activity that leads nowhere. Despite these notions, he encouraged people to embrace sports.

An ACwO spokesperson told Social Samosa that since the brand onboarded Chhetri as its ambassador, it saw fantastic growth and engagement from football fans across the country. 

They highlighted that Chhetri’s has an incredibly far-reaching appeal, especially among young people who admire his skills on the pitch and his humble personality off it and that his loyal following on social media has amplified ACwO’s visibility tremendously.

“Beyond the social media growth, we have seen real business impact. Our sales have also seen an increase since the partnership began. The ROI has been highly positive thanks to his reach, reputation, and natural likeability,” said an ACwO spokesperson. 

As sports marketing moves beyond cricket, brand Chhetri is likely to see a positive impact too.

“Sport is a sleeping giant in India. This viewership and the rising investment in sports means that it is not only cricket that is going to thrive in India but also other sports, especially Olympic Games sports. In recent years, we have seen more national success in other sports than we have in cricket, which is a thought to chew upon,” said Gadiwala.

Challenges that brands face

That being said, Gadiwala shared a few challenges while collaborating with him in the long-term and for AFC that brand Chhetri faces:

• One major challenge that brands could face when collaborating with Sunil Chhetri is the risk of a conflict of interest. Since he is contracted with his Indian Super League club - Bengaluru FC, and plays for the Indian national team, there are restrictions on brand collaborations due to those contracts. Not to forget that he already has his own sponsors as well including Puma and Herbalife. 

• Sunil Chhetri is the brand ambassador for Puma while the Indian football team’s shirt sponsors are SIX5SIX. There are lots of restrictions on sponsor rules when players are on national duty. 

• Another major challenge would be his schedule, and requirement of permission from the AIFF and his football franchise to be available for shoots.

• The TV viewership for the AFC Asian Cup is not as high as cricket is in India and the dates of the India vs Afghanistan and India vs England cricket series overlapped with the AFC Asian Cup.

• The Pro Kabaddi League is also currently running and on course to do its highest ever numbers in terms of viewership so that would also affect brands’ choice in signing up Chhetri at this stage.

For Chhetri to strike more goals in the brand world, these roadblocks will have to be addressed. 

Gadiwala said, “The only way in which we foresee him adding brands to his portfolio is if the national football team performs well in the Cup, and Chhetri ends up reaching the 100-goal mark.”

When it comes to sports marketing, Sunil Chhetri's value as a brand extends beyond goals on the field. His authenticity, diverse fan base, and ability to connect and resonate with brands, position him as a standout figure. Brands that navigate the challenges with strategic tactics will find a valuable collaborator in Chhetri. Experts believe as the journey continues, Chhetri's influence will shape the future landscape of sports marketing in India, one goal at a time.