- I may sound like a stuck record but no harm in reiterating yet again how the game of cricket is viewed in India. Cricket is considered no less than a religion albeit the one which ensures all countrymen are united in cheering for their beloved team. None has the power, wherewithal, attraction, or heft like cricket to forge an inspirational bonding that goes a long way in ushering in that feel-good factor. Ever since the Indian Team’s unexpected triumph in the 1983 Prudential World Cup 50-over cricket, the Indian citizens have only ensured the popularity of the game reach and breach newer heights by the day. We all know how the abridged version of the game in the form of T20 cricket has metamorphosed the revenue earnings manifolds in the last decade or so.
PC: PUNJAB NEWS EXPRESS
- The Indian Premier League (IPL) T20 cricket tournament has emerged as the most lucrative league among the several underways. It has also opened up doors for hitherto unknown avenues of revenue generation from various sources too. The recently concluded IPL media rights e-auction for the 2023-27 cycle has not only generated eye-popping numbers but also proved beyond doubt that the IPL is the most popular league around the globe. The sale of media rights has not only netted the Board of Control for Cricket in India a bonanza, but it has also reconfirmed the league’s superpower status in world cricket and, in a broader sense, is a testament to the market power of Indians and Indians abroad. No stopping the Indian cricket saga to reach stratospheric levels.
- Mind you, Indians carry cricket wherever they go, and the sheer demographic presence makes them an inalienable force to reckon with come what may. And what are those numbers we are referring to here? Across four buckets covering both TV and digital in the Indian subcontinent and the rest of the world, the media rights were sold for humongous Rs. 48,390 crores. Yes, the BCCI deserves full credit for playing the auction game well. Many had expressed doubts about the valuation, thanks to the after-effects of the pandemic. But a successful IPL season this year, which also saw the addition of two new franchises, and BCCI’s skillful leveraging of digital viewership two seasons before that when Covid emptied stadiums ensured brand IPL did not suffer.
PC: CoCo
- In fact, the media rights auction showed that IPL is now a global leader in terms of sports commerce. IPL’s per match valuation is Rs. 118 crores. By that metric, it now ranks globally second, after America’s NFL, and is ahead of the English Premier League. Moreover, IPL today has not just emerged as a conveyor belt of cricketing talent for Team India, but also an arena where international players are tested and allowed to hone their skills. England international Jonny Bairstow attested to this recently when he credited his stint in the IPL for his astonishing performance against New Zealand at the Trend Bridge Test that secured the English side a five-wicket win. Money is no more a problem. Cricket will expand its reach beyond shores.
