New Delhi: Cricketer Virat Kohli has not only stolen Mahendra Singh Dhoni's on field thunder, but that of his off field too.
According to an Economic Times report, Kohli has hiked his endorsement fee to Rs 5 crore per day, thus becoming the highest paid celebrity.
“The increase comes as the renewal of his endorsement deal with cola maker PepsiCo is being negotiated,” ET reported.
With Kohli's new endorsement fee, he has even surpassed former captain MS Dhoni's fee that he would charge at his peak. The 28-year-old has also left behind Bollywood stars such as Ranveer Singh and Ranbir Kapoor in the endorsement race, ET added.
Kohli last month struck an eight-year deal with Puma that is worth Rs 110 crore, becoming the first Indian sportsman to sign an endorsement deal amounting this much.
Before signind the deal with Puma, Kohli was endorsing rival brand Adidas. That three-year deal came to an end last year.
The Indian Skipper endorses 18 brands including Audi cars, MRF tyres, Tissot watches, Gionee phones, Boost milk drink, Colgate toothpaste and Vicks and Manyavar among others.
When it comes to fame ranking, Kohli was the most popular celebrity, improving his earnings rank to No 3 with a reported Rs 134.44 crore earnings in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 List 2016. In 2015, Kohli was ranked No 7.
Meanwhile, the annual Forbes Fab 40 list, that estimates the brand value of top sports labels, athletes, teams and events, said that Dhoni’s brand value reduced from $21 million in 2015 to $11 million in 2016.
