IPL hits a Gigantic financial rock bottom, BCCI worried

The Indian Premier League (IPL), long considered India’s premier media and marketing powerhouse, has experienced a rare phase of correction. According to the 2025 report by D&P Advisory, the cash-rich tournament’s overall valuation has declined for two consecutive years for the first time in its history.

Despite a recent drop in valuation, the IPL remains India’s largest sporting property. The 2025 season attracted over one billion viewers across television and digital platforms. Notably, digital viewership surpassed TV for the first time. JioStar reported 1.19 billion unique viewers and 55.2 million peak concurrent streams.

IPL Valuation Declines for Second Consecutive Year

According to D&P Advisory’s 2025 IPL–WPL Valuation Report, titled “Beyond 22 Yards: The Power of Platforms, The Price of Regulation,” the IPL’s valuation has declined for the first time in its history over two consecutive years.

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The league’s worth dropped from ₹92,500 crore ($11.2 billion) in 2023 to ₹82,700 crore ($9.9 billion) in 2024 and further to ₹76,100 crore ($8.8 billion) in 2025.

The report stated that the ₹16,400 crore decline was a structural reset in India’s cricket economy, driven by a combination of media consolidation and the government’s ban on real-money gaming (RMG) sponsorships, which affected the IPL’s previously rapid growth trajectory.

The IPL’s Fundamentals Remain Strong - Santosh N, managing partner at D&P Advisory

In 2024, Reliance Industries merged its media assets with Walt Disney’s India operations, forming JioStar after the Disney Star-Viacom18 merger. Both television and digital rights are now under a single platform, reducing competitive bidding for IPL broadcast and streaming rights.

India introduced the Promotion & Regulation of Online Gaming Act, 2025, which banned online real-money gaming (RMG) advertising and sponsorship, eliminating an estimated ₹1,500-2,000 crore in annual IPL sponsorship spend. Platforms like Dream11 exited major deals.

Santosh N of D&P Advisory stated that advertising sales will remain feasible, but pricing pressure is likely to persist, and media rights growth will continue at a slower, more moderate pace than in previous years.

“The IPL’s fundamentals remain strong,” Santosh said. “But while selling advertising inventory may not pose a challenge, the pricing environment will remain under pressure.” He added that while media rights will continue to appreciate, the pace and magnitude of that growth will be lower than what was envisaged.

RCB Tops IPL 2025 Franchise Brand Rankings, Followed by MI and CSK

In 2025, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) topped the IPL brand rankings after winning their first IPL title. They were followed by the Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Gujarat Titans.

The report added that Indian cricket is now entering a new phase where growth will rely less on big increases in media rights and more on steady income, strong sponsorship deals, and active digital engagement.

Notably, the Women’s Premier League (WPL) has shown even more stability. Its total value in 2025 was ₹1,275 crore ($148 million), slightly down from ₹1,350 crore ($160 million) in 2024.

Despite the small drop in value, TV viewership grew by 150 percent year-on-year, and digital engagement increased by 70 percent during the opening match. This period for the WPL is considered “consolidation, not contraction.”

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