Kerala Blasters make significant signings: Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna on board as 'co-owners'
AS THE SUMMER BREAK kicks in, ISL franchises have gone hyper-active in the transfer market, signing players left right and center to build a squad ahead of the 2016 edition of the two-month private tournament.
Kerala Blasters have singed a handful of players already and retained others. But they are turning head with their slew of star-studded recruits off the field.
Tamil and Telugu film stars Akkineni Nagarjuna and Chiranjeevi, film producer Allu Arvind and mega investor Nimmagadda Prasad have all bought stakes in the Kochi-based franchise. They all were unveiled in an event attended by Sachin Tendulkar, dressed in matching blue shirts, and a selfie with the Master Blaster thrown in for good measure.
The #yellowmeinkhelo selfie with new co-owners. A warm welcome to the football crazy world of @KBFCOfficial pic.twitter.com/jak1H39LED
— sachin tendulkar (@sachin_rt) June 1, 2016
These new "co-owners" are all connected to Star, which is one of the co-owners of the ISL tournament itself. Originally owners of MAA TV, they recently sold 4 television channels to Star.
This will definitely add to the marketability of the franchise in Andhra/Telangana and Tamil Nadu as well as help the film stars involved promote themselves. Their films, dubbed in Malayalam, earn a significant portion of their total box office earnings.
