𝗖𝗘𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗻𝗻𝗮𝗶 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗻 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘀 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 📢 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲𝗱: “It is settled that no Service Tax is payable on sponsorship of IPL and ICC cricket tournaments as the ingredients for levy of tax are not fulfilled in the absence of any provision of service and when payments were made only in relation to sponsorship of the IPL Cricket tournament.”

🔍 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆: M/s. Vodafone Idea Limited 𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲: M/s. Vodafone Idea Limited sponsored IPL and ICC Cricket World Cup events under the ‘Vodafone’ brand from 2006 to 2010. The Revenue, noting unpaid Service Tax on these sponsorships, issued a show cause notice demanding Service Tax and imposing penalties for the period’s sponsorship expenses.

⚖️ 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: The Tribunal ruled in favor of the appellant, confirming that no Service Tax is payable on IPL and ICC cricket tournament sponsorships. Citing previous decisions, including M/s. Hero Motorcorp and M/s. Vodafone Cellular, it concluded that sponsorship expenses were not taxable, as they did not constitute a service provision.

📜 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲: M/s. Vodafone Idea Limited vs. The Commissioner of Central Excise, Customs and Service Tax 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝘅 𝗔𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗡𝗼. 41520 of 2013 𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 23 June 2023 This ruling confirms that sponsorship of sports events, such as the IPL and ICC Cricket tournaments, does not attract Service Tax, as the prerequisites for taxability are not met in such sponsorship arrangements.