The unstoppable ascent of Brand Virat Kohli
A look at the man and his many brand endorsements on his 33rd birthday
Virat Kohli has cemented his place in sporting history, both inside and outside India, by being one of the country’s greatest batsmen and successful captains (unless he really drops the ball before retirement). He has also left an indelible impression on an entire generation of cinemagoers, who had come to expect the star athlete’s Manyavar ads during trailers and intervals as a matter of course. Kohli had signed on with the clothing brand way back in 2016.
Today, as the Royal Challengers Bangalore team captain turns 33, we look at his roster of brand associations. And with an estimated personal net worth of close to Rs 700 Crore, Kohli sure has a lot of them.
Kohli has taken up the mantle for Boost Energy Drinks from someone he's often compared to -- master blaster Sachin Tendulkar himself, signing on with the brand way back in 2012.In fact, being a well-known fitness fanatic, Kohli is the brand ambassador of many health, fitness and exercise brands, including Herbalife Nutrition (which he renewed his contract with earlier this year), Sun Pharma's Volini, and Vicks India, as well as supplement giant Wellman.
Puma is another sports company that believes heavily in the Kohli brand, having roped him in as brand ambassador in 2017, when Kohli became the first Indian sports star to sign a reportedly 110 crore endorsement deal for a single brand, and which is said to wrap up in 2025.
Continuing to follow his passions through his endorsements, gearhead Kohli also has deals with Audi India, Uber India, Valvoline and Hero MotoCorp. And of course, like any good Indian batsman, his bat is sponsored by MRF.
Apart from his previously mentioned tie-up with Manyavar, Kohli is also a brand ambassador for online fashion hub Myntra. Keeping in fashion with this he’s also associated with Philips India trimmers, and Himalaya herbal skincare products.
Also, a self-professed techie, Kohli has deals with IPL sponsor Vivo as well as Chinese smartphone company iQOO and audio brand Muve Accoustics, as well as appearing in an ad for Google Duo. He is also an ambassador for Mobile Premier League (MPL), which brought him aboard with a Rs 12 crore deal. In fact, his most recent deal, penned only in October’21, is with wearables company Fire-Boltt. Earlier, in September, he signed on with global high-tech wellness brand Hyperice, and is also an investor-athlete in the company, joining a roster of sport star investors from around the world.
Speaking of investing, Kohli has also invested in insurance start-up Digit Insurance, which became a unicorn at the beginning of this year and then brought him in as brand ambassador in March. Kohli also co-created his own fashion brand Wrogn (pronounced ‘wrong’) back in 2014. Kohli also serves as the face of payment app UPI Chalega.
Other FMCG associations include Blue Star electronics, snack brand Too Yumm, and American Tourister luggage, Colgate. Other hard-to-categorise tie-ups include Shyam Steel, Amaze Inverters and batteries and edtech platform Great Learning.
