Mumbai: The runaway growth story of the Indian Premier League (IPL) may see a stutter or two in the next few years. According to a report prepared by D&P Advisory, a valuation services provider, the IPL ecosystem value has fallen from ₹92,500 crore to ₹82,700 crore, marking a decrease of around 10.6%. In dollar terms, this translates to a decline from $11.2 billion to $9.9 billion, a decrease of approximately 11.7%.

The estimation has broadly been based on an anticipated dull round of media rights, which are due in three years. Fierce competitors Disney Star and Viacom18 who currently hold IPL’s TV and digital rights respectively for a collective ₹48,390 crore are soon to become a merged entity. That will reduce the scope of competitive bidding in the coming years.

“We anticipate certain demand-side constraints in the next IPL media rights cycle auction due to a decrease in the number of potential bidders. Several significant developments from the past year have led us to revise our media rights value estimates like the failed merger between Zee and Sony, Network18-Disney Star India merger and delay in the entry of major global tech players,” Santosh N, Managing Partner, D&P Advisory, said.

The last round of media rights (2023-27) turned out to be the most fruitful for the league with valuation going up by three times. IPL had for the first time come up with invitation to bid for digital and linear TV rights separately. Given the expanded digital footprint in the country, both categories fetched nearly 50% returns each.

Compared to the previous edition, the Women’s Premier League (WPL) ecosystem value has increased from ₹1,250 crore to ₹1,350 crore, marking an 8% rise.

Despite a poor season on-field, the report sees five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians emerging as the most valued franchise in 2024 followed by Chennai Super Kings, the joint record holders for the most number of titles with MI.

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