IPL 2021 Suspended: BCCI Set To Lose Close To Rs 2000-2500 Crore Due To IPL Postponement

With the 14th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) getting suspended for an indefinite period of time due to Covid, the Board of Control for Cricket in India [BCCI] stands to lose close to Rs 2000-2500 Crore of the broadcast and sponsorship money.

The BCCI was forced to suspend the 14th edition on Tuesday after multiple Covid positive cases rocked the IPL in the past two days.

“We would be losing anything between Rs 2000 to Rs 2500 crore for the midway postponement of this season. I would say something in the range of Rs 2200 crore will be closer to accurate estimation,” a senior BCCI official told PTI on conditions of anonymity.

The 52-day 60-match tournament which started on April 09 was set to finish on May 30 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad but the season had to be halted after a mere 29 fixtures.

The biggest loss for the BCCI is the money it earns from its broadcaster, Star Sports.

Star Sports won the five-year exclusive broadcasting contract back in 2018 for a whopping amount of Rs 16347 Crore and the pre-match valuation comes out to be close to Rs 54.5 Crore.

With 31 of the 60 matches not taking place, BCCI is set to lose close to Rs 1690 crore.

In the case of the title sponsor, Vivo, which pays Rs 440 Crore per season, the BCCI is likely to get less than half of that amount because of the IPL getting postponed.

Add to it, other sponsors like Unacademy, Red, Upstox, and Tata Motors, who play close to Rs 120 crore each.

“Slash all the payments by half or a bit less and you will be reaching a loss in the range of 2200 crore. The actually losses could be much more but this is a back of the hand calculation for the season,” the official said.

The loss of such a substantial amount of money will also reduce the central revenue pool for the season- the money that BCCI distributes to each of the 8 franchises.

The official, however, refused to divulge on how much each franchise stands to lose due to the suspension of the competition.

“It is difficult to say what kind of sponsorship and co-sponsorship money they earned this season as the economic climate has been pretty hostile,” he said.

Also Read: IPL 2021: BCCI Looking At September Window To Hold The Remaining Matches Of The Tournament