Mumbai: The Indian Premier League has seen incredible growth. Each time media rights are up for grabs, they surpass expectations, with more investors eager to join the exclusive group of IPL franchise owners.

“In just a short time, it has risen to become the second-largest sports league globally. Our goal is to build on that legacy and ensure that the IPL becomes the top sports league in the future,” IPL chairman Arun Dhumal shared with HT on Saturday as the 18th season kicked off.

While this is an ambitious goal, the BCCI is taking its time. The NFL, the premier sports league in the US, runs over an 18-week period with 272 games and 32 teams. Its latest media rights deal was reportedly valued at $110 billion over 11 years. For the IPL to reach that level, it would need a similar timeframe and a comparable talent pool, both of which are currently lacking. The financials also need to make sense. The upcoming IPL media rights auction could face challenges due to the merger of Disney Star and Viacom 18.

According to the 2023-27 media rights tender, there will be 410 matches played during this cycle, with the final year expanding to a 94-match league. This year, the IPL has opted for 74 matches, and it seems likely that this number will stay the same for the rest of the cycle, resulting in a projected shortfall of 40 matches and ₹4,720 crore in media rights revenue.

“For 94 games, you either need a longer window or you’ll have to schedule more double-headers,” Dhumal noted.

Avoiding a packed schedule with back-to-back matches is a key factor for the broadcaster. JioHotstar is currently shelling out ₹118 crore for each match. Afternoon games tend to attract significantly fewer viewers, with numbers dropping by as much as 40% compared to prime time in the evening. This decline in viewership can negatively affect sponsorship deals and overall revenue.

Dhumal mentioned, “This year, with the Champions Trophy and WPL, we didn’t have a suitable window. In the future, if we can create a larger window while considering the interests of all parties involved, we’ll make a decision.”

Thanks to IPL’s strong commercial value in the cricket world and the BCCI’s influence, the playing window has expanded to 65 days this year.

The number of freelance players remains limited, and Indian cricketers, who are vital to the IPL's success, are often busy with international commitments throughout the year. The schedule is still largely influenced by ICC white-ball events that occur annually and the World Test Championship.

Sanjog Gupta, CEO of JioStar Sports, noted, “In theory, you could expand to 12 teams with the current format. It’s not just about the number of matches.”

In the current IPL setup, instead of each team facing every other team both at home and away, a team competes against five teams twice and four teams just once, which creates some exciting matchups.

“It hinges on 8-10 interconnected factors,” Gupta explained. “We need to consider the scheduling, the depth of talent, squad sizes, the big auction, and how much turnover there will be in the teams. Are we sticking with the same teams for 94 matches, or are we thinking about adding more games? Every time the IPL has expanded, there’s been a drop in performance. Even during the first expansion, we saw a decline. It takes time to bounce back.”

Both the broadcaster and the BCCI have indicated that while cricket viewership in India continues to soar and set new records, another round of IPL expansion might not be imminent.

“Absolutely, many people are eager to own teams because of the successful business model. The last team auction showed significant value growth, which has attracted a lot of investor interest. However, we need to consider the bigger picture and what’s best for the league,” Dhumal noted.

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