PV Sindhu x PUMA – Game Set Match!
More than two months into 2025 and after getting married, PV Sindhu is ready to swing back into her rigorous schedule. She’s been sweating it out on the court to prepare herself for the upcoming BWF Tournaments, while also reflecting on her loss in the recently held India Open 2025 in the Quarter-final stage.
She has also spent the first week of the new year actively promoting her multi-year partnership with the sportswear powerhouse Puma, a collaboration that was kept under wraps for quite some time.
Puma India has decided to undertake a powerful leap into the world of badminton, from the otherwise conventional sports and has brought on two-time Olympic medallist P.V. Sindhu as its latest ambassador, to extend the desired support for women’s sports through grass level participation and have signaled the brand’s next big step in the Indian athleisure market.
Badminton is one of India’s most favourite sports after cricket, and by partnering with one of the most celebrated players, Puma has an opportunity to enhance its current market value. The game plan is to devote a unidirectional focus on the performance-sports strategy, and by using Sindhu’s presence as a catalyst, bolster the importance attributed to women’s sports. Indian sport is on a continual rise and with Sindhu’s appointment, India has become the first country within the Puma universe to promote badminton as a full-fledged game.
Today, as one of the highest-paid female athletes in the country, having raked in approx. $7 million USD in 2023-24, the badminton maverick hopes to take her current legacy ahead. The athlete is currently in the process of setting up the ‘PV Sindhu Centre for Badminton and Sports Excellence’ in Vizag, an academy that is expected to prepare many more Sindhus.
As it is rightly said, ‘Sports is a culture’. The number of people who have turned their attention to sports not just for the thrill, but also a medium to explore as a realm of fashion, community building, recreation and fitness. Known for her stylish outfits, Sindhu’s passion for fashion can now be combined with PUMA’s aesthetics to curate a synergy.
Sindhu’s achievements have played a crucial role till date in bringing badminton to the forefront as a competitive sport in India. She is the first Indian to win five world championship medals and has triumphed across the Olympics, Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and beyond. She has been honored with numerous accolades like the prestigious Khel Ratna award, Padma Shri, Padma Bhushan, and Arjuna Award to name a few.
Few days ago, several PUMA stores across Southern India were seen with the labels ‘PVMA’, and these signages went viral on social media too. This left the netizens wondering about the error committed by the marketing team. However, days later when the real advertising strategy was revealed with PV Sindhu as the latest entrant to the already star-studded celebrity pack, the anomaly chosen by PUMA to project this collaboration turned out to generate glued attention and frenzy, as desired.
My Perspective:
PV Sindhu’s stellar performances over the last few years have cemented her as a global youth icon. By partnering with PV, who is quite active with her investments in the badminton circuit of the country, this trailblazer’s association with the global sport-apparel manufacturer is going to be a force to reckon with.
Sindhu’s alliance with PUMA comes at an essential stage, as badminton continues its accelerated rise in the country, with more than fifty Indian players ranked in the global top 100 as of BWF, Dec 2024 list.
Capitalizing this golden opportunity, PUMA and Sindhu have partnered to broaden the sport’s lucrative fame, revolutionizing it particularly among young athletes and inspiring young women athletes to take up sports as a profession. The ongoing four-year deal with Sindhu also strengthens PUMA’s long-standing commitment to show the solidarity and support for the women in sports.
Writer: Tulika Agarwal
