Writer’s Strike End a Boon for Sports Networks, Agencies
Disney and Amazon are among the six entities that have already purchased the documents needed to bid for the Indian Premier League’s broadcasting rights — the third-largest sporting event by viewership.
Bids worth $5 billion or more are expected for the rights between 2023 and 2027, while earlier reports suggested the rights could fetch as much as $7 billion.
The other companies looking to obtain the rights include fantasy sports platform Dream 11, Reliance Industries, Sony, and Zee Entertainment — Sony purchased a 53% stake in Zee last year. Other bidders may still decide to join, and those listed may not end up bidding at all.
BCCI, the sport’s local governing body, will conduct an online auction that includes linear and streaming rights starting June 12.
- Up to Match 35 last year, the IPL brought in its highest viewership in three years at 380 million viewers.
- Disney-owned Star India owned the rights from 2018 to 2022 as part of a $2.5 billion deal. While Star India had rights to both linear and streaming rights, the two will be auctioned off separately for the league’s next set of deals.
Premier League Popularity
As the media numbers get bigger for IPL, so does its size. The Indian Premier League added two new teams this season: the Gujarat Titans and the Lucknow Super Giants.
CVC Capital Partners purchased the Titans for $737.7 million, and the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group bought the Super Giants for $930 million.
