The Indian Premier League(IPL), is one of the most popular and biggest cricket league on the planet. it was founded by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in 2007,with the inaugural season held in 2008. The league features ten city based IPL franchises teams and usually takes place between March to May every year. The most successful IPL teams are Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings with five titles each.
The IPL has quickly become one of the most popular and profitable cricket in the world with the brand value of $10.7 billion. In the recent auction of IPL media rights the BCCI collected a whopping amount of INR 48,390 crores, nearly three times more compared to previous auction. Disney Hotstar paid INR 23,575 crore for television broadcasting rights, while Viacom18 bagged digital and non-exclusive digital rights for INR 23,578 crores.
Let’s discuss about some other ways through IPL franchises makes money
1. Media rights
BCCI collects a massive revenues by selling media rights to broadcasters and OTT (over the top) platforms. A big amount of revenue share that BCCI generates from IPL is shared with the IPL franchises. Franchises get a guaranteed of 40-50% revenue share from IPL central contract. The revenue share for highly popular franchise like Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders is more than other franchise as they hold better earning potential.
2. Brand sponsorship
Apart from media rights IPL franchises generate a significant part of their revenue through brand sponsorship. The sponsors are the real source of income for the IPL franchises. Franchises tie-up with brands to offer them visibility to the brand by endorsing their logos on their jerseys, sports gear and team kits. The more area a logo covers on the jerseys, the more money brand has to pay the franchise. Teams also earn from other marketing activities related to the tournament organised by their sponsor.
3. Merchandising sales
According to a report by Research and Market, the Indian sports equipment and apparel market value is estimated at $30 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach $43.80 billion by 2028. Every franchise sells its merchandise including jerseys, caps, wrist watches, wristbands and other items, through retail stores and receives a shares of the revenue collected from consumers. Therefore, merchandise sales is another significant source of income for IPL franchises.
4. Ticket sales
Ticket sales is a significant source of income for the IPL franchises to earn revenue. With each franchise hosting a minimum of 7 home matches, which provides them to generate significant income through ticket sales. Through ticket sales the revenue is around 10-15% of the overall revenue earned by the IPL franchises. The price of tickets is based on the seating capacity available in the stadium.
A small portion of the ticket sales revenue is shared with the BCCI and sponsors, while the rest goes into the franchise’s pocket. The home team receives a set percentage of the total revenue from ticket sales. The franchises then have complete rights to the income from gate tickets and passes, the IPL teams depend largely on their fans for revenue.
5. Brand value
Brands value adds a lot of beneficial to the IPL franchises. If you have a star player like MS Dhoni, Virat kohli and Rohit Sharma in your team, you stand a better chance of attracting top brands and investors. Winning IPL or even making it to the Playoffs helps IPL franchises, increase the value of their brands. When it comes to brand value, teams who have won the IPL title multiple times including CSK, MI, and KKR, top the table.
6. Prize money
The IPL prize money has been the same over time. It is the another significant source of revenue for IPL franchises. The winning teams receives the largest share of prize of money, which goes to the team owners and the players. Last year, winners Chennai super Kings took home INR 20 crores while the runner-up Gujrat Titans receives INR 13 crores. Teams securing 3rd and 4th place receives INR 7 crore and INR 6.5 crore respectively.
The winners of orange and purple cap holder receives a hefty amount of INR 15 lakhs each for their outstanding performance. Apart from these the IPL also several other prizes. Such as, player of the season, emerging player of the season, most valuable player and super striker of the season. Which encourages players to perform well in the field.
Conclusion
With the increasing popularity of IPL and T20 cricket, the IPL franchises are expected to see their earnings grow. It’s a profitable league that generates revenue from various sources including advertisements, sponsors, tickets, merchandise, TV, and media. The IPL serves as both a profitable business and a festival for cricket fans worldwide.
Know more: IPL franchise earnings
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