MUMBAI: Nokia has exited as title sponsor for the Champions T20 League event a year after it had stepped in to replace Airtel.

ESPN Star Sports, the rights holder for the Champions T20 League event, will announce a new sponsor tomorrow. ESS has roped in a leading telecom player to replace Nokia.

Earlier, Airtel had exited as title sponsor prematurely after two years. The telecom major had signed a deal believed to be worth Rs 1.70 billion for five years. The contract, however, had a review option.

The Champions T20 struggled to draw television viewership in large numbers last year, despite ESPN Star Sports roping in Shah Rukh Khan as brand ambassador. This time the event takes place in South Africa and, thus, offers less opportunity for the franchises to do activation targeting Indian viewers.

The fourth edition of event will take place in South Africa from 9-28 October featuring 10 teams. The main tournament will be preceded by a six-team qualifying tournament to fill in the two vacant slots for the main tournament. This year the organisers have got a team from Pakistan in the tournament to give it a fillip.