Pay us first, show affiliation proof with FIVB before starting league, PVL CEO Joy Bhattacharjya tells VFI - Exclusive
India had enjoyed its finest era in volleyball in the past century, winning three medals at the Asian Games (1958; Bronze, 1962; Silver, 1986; Bronze). In 2014, India achieved their best-ever (34th) rank in the FIVB rankings but the sport was derailed following an internal dispute in the Volleyball Federation of India (VFI), that led to a two-year ban till 2018. It essentially meant the Indian volleyball players couldn't play in international leagues.
It seemed the sport had picked up again in 2019 when the Baseline Ventures conceived the Pro Volleyball League, signing a 10-year contract with the Volleyball Federation of India (VFI) to organise it. However, it was struck with a legal dispute and VFI terminated Baseline’s contract, accusing the company of "high-headedness, unfair commercial practices, unethical practices, non-payment of minimum guarantee fee on time and actions which were against the terms of the agreement." 'Joy Bhattacharjya, currently the CEO of the Prime Volleyball League, had rejected all accusations.
The matter went to court and VFI lost. The Madras High Court ordered the federation to pay ₹4 crore as compensation and ₹5 lakhs as legal fees to the Baseline Ventures after ruling that the "termination was not justified."
This year, a rechristened version of the Pro Volley League – the Prime Volleyball League is being held. As the season went on, the VFI announced that it would launch the Indian Volley League (IVL), “tentatively scheduled to kick-start around June-July 2022.” In a statement, the VFI also said that the league will be “sanctioned both by the Asian Volleyball Confederation and International Volleyball Federation (FIVB).”
“See, I have nothing against private leagues. More competition leads to more competence. But there are 2-3 things before that. They (VFI) owe us. We sued them because they cancelled our contract. Before you do anything, you pay us. Whether it is you or Discovery (the broadcaster), first you pay us and then you start the league,” Joy Bhattacharjya tells Hindustan Times in an exclusive chat.
“Secondly, last year, the players went to the Asian Championship and the whole team paid from their own pocket, not one of them has been repaid. And thirdly, the ministry doesn’t recognize the federation. So, what piece of paper do they have? The nationals that they have held, they do not have certificates for that. Normally, when you win the nationals, you get certificates and you get a promotion on the basis of those. But the certificates are not being recognised. Railways have stated that no certificates from the nationals in volleyball will be considered," Bhattacharjya says.
We tried contacting the VFI but didn’t get a response.
The federation conducted the nationals between 7-13 earlier this month; the Prime Volleyball League started on the 5th of February. The VFI said that the selection trials would not be held for the Indian players who took part in the PVL. Bhattacharjya, however, says the whole point of organising the league was to ensure the players have something to look forward to.
“Players are free to make their own mind. I will never pressure the players (to not play in the IVL). The main reason behind organising this league is to make sure that players have something. Do you think it is that easy to organise a league?” says the PVL CEO.
“Getting seven franchises; proper, long-time franchises. Then getting sponsors, getting a television channel, and then getting sponsors for the team. It is not easy.
“The other faction of the VFI (that is fighting the court case) is running trials for the national team in February. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is already derecognizing it. VFI is not recognised. We’re going to fight an open battle and say that if you want your best players at the Asian Games, why are you running the trials in February for an event that is in September? Basically, you are trying to stop these players,” said Bhattacharjya.
But does he fear that PVL could face a similar fate as the Indian Cricket League – a tournament that was labeled a ‘rebel league’ by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)?
“When the ICL started, they paid a lot of money to a lot of cricketers to come and play. We had put an auction, we simply said that if you want to play, you put your name in the auction. Almost every player who has played for the country is here. Ex-internationals are associated with us,” says Bhattacharjya.
“Also, they (VFI) have to win their own case court to prove that they’re a federation. Secondly, they need to pay us ₹6 crore (the original penalty plus interest as damages and legal fees). Thirdly, they need to show us the proof that FIVB is recognising the league. Show us a letter or an e-mail or any piece of paper which proves their approval of the IVL. If they can’t, they have lied. That is not allowed.”
A pathbreaker
The franchises participating in the PVL are also the stakeholders; a concept inspired by the National Basketball Association (NBA) in the United States. The PVL authorizes the team owners to take major tournament decisions.
“It has been tried before; not by franchise owners, but by federation where we don’t own anything. Now, cricket is a very powerful support and BCCI was doing an efficient job of running cricket. But if you look at other federations, there is so much of corruption and incompetence. It is the combination of the two,” says Bhattacharjya.
“It was always possible to do it but simply organising a private league is not enough. No sport can make money immediately; it is important to believe that you can make a particular game so popular that it will reap financial rewards with time. So, you need the right game and you need somebody to take on the federation that are incompetent in doing what they do. So, it is the combination of these two, in addition to people who can market the sport well.”
Bhattacharjya further explains how the future prospects could be unstable under a federation-run league. “See, the problem with federations is not only that they are also unstable. Suppose you have a sport, you have seven teams, you are working with the federation and it is doing really well. Suddenly, there are changes in the top hierarchy of the federation and now, it sees this league as an opportunity to gain personal favours. All these things happen and people don’t want to invest anymore. You need to have some sort of stability if you’re investing for, say 5 years; you need to have an assurance that nothing will change,” says the PVL CEO.
Why tournaments, not leagues?
In a press conference earlier this month, Bhattacharjya said it is difficult to run longer leagues in India. The PVL CEO admits that it is “very difficult” to bring a change at the moment.
“It is a very long-term process and it’s not easy. In international leagues, a major part of the money comes from gate receipts. In India, you make most of the money from ad sales, sponsorships and media rights. In such circumstances, no advertiser would say that they are willing to invest for five months. So, it’s tough,” he explains.
“So, this is a dichotomy which is really difficult in Indian sports. Till the major money comes from sponsorships, it is really difficult to change this. But I hope for a slightly longer season. I want to push it for one-and-a-half months, but more than that, it’s very difficult now.”
However, that doesn’t mean the tournament cannot expand.
“Volleyball is the easiest sport to play. That’s the beauty of the sport. There’s a huge following of volleyball in the northeast. In UP, there are Rural Volleyball Games that are held, and people come in thousands to watch it. We’re very hopeful (of expanding). A few teams that are participating in the PVL are planning to open their academies. Kochi have even started their academy. The more we spread this, the better the product will be. I’ll be very bullish about it,” affirms Bhattacharjya.
Women’s talent pool limited
During the Pro Volleyball League, a women’s all-star game was also conducted. But how long would it take for a women’s league to start?
“We are about 2-3 years away from having a proper women’s league. We need at least five good players from the country for every team -- and about 35-40 players who are roughly at the same level. We don’t see that pool yet. The moment we see that, it will definitely happen,” says Bhattacharjya.
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
