A controversy-free tournament and increased viewership in 2017 has helped the Indian Premier League to further enhance its reputation as the best cricket league in the world as its brand value has increased by a whopping 26% in 2017 to over $ 5.3 billion from $ 4.2 billion in 2016. The findings were confirmed by the latest report published by Duff & Phelps, a New York-based corporate finance advisory firm released on Wednesday (August 23) in Mumbai.
“This IPL season has garnered attention for all the right reasons — a relatively controversy-free tournament, increase in social media engagement, strategic and highly successful marketing initiatives, and compelling on-field performances -– all of which affirmed IPL’s standing as the most valuable cricketing league in the world,” Duff & Phelps India Managing Director Varun Gupta said.
The report also estimated that the renewed television rights for the lucrative tournament will be sold for $ 1.8 billion for a five-year period and the renewed Internet and Mobile broadcasting rights will be sold for $ 210 million. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reopened the IPL bids on 21 July. Both television and digital media rights of IPL are up for grabs for a five-year period from 2018 to 2022.
“Ten years of IPL has provided us with a glimpse of what to expect in the next 25 years. It will be safe to say that for the foreseeable future, the months of April and May will stay demarcated as IPL territory where nothing else sells. Not even Bollywood!” the report titled “IPL: The Decade Edition,” stated.
IPL’s reach in a rural part of the country has also played a significant part in enhancing its brand value. This year’s edition generated 1.25 billion impressions on television across the five Sony television channels and nearly 45% of the total viewership came from rural India.
Mumbai Indians brand value more than 100 million:
Meanwhile, IPL 2017 champions Mumbai Indians has been the most valued brand in the league with worth the brand value at $106 million, followed by Kolkata Knight Riders at $99 million and Royal Challengers Bangalore in third place at $88 million. The report, however, did not finalists Rising Pune Supergiant or Gujarat Lions since their association with IPL came to an end after this season.