The IPL Didn’t Just Build a League.....
Prashant K. (PK) Gulati
Collector of Exceptional Experiences | Seeker of Misfits, Outliers & Doers | Global Nomad | WYSIWYG | Curious & Always On
When the Indian Premier League India - or IPL Cricket Tournament Series - launched in 2008, I doubt even its boldest backers could’ve imagined what it would become—a $16+ billion juggernaut that transformed not just cricket, but India’s entire sports business.
Back then, it felt like a flashy experiment. Today, it's second only to the NFL in per-match media value, outpacing the EPL, NBA, and MLB. All this, in a country where a match ticket might cost less than a Starbucks coffee.
But IPL’s real legacy? It gave India a business model for sport.
India’s sports industry is projected to hit $130 billion by 2030, driven by the convergence of private capital, public infrastructure, and tech innovation. IPL sits at the very apex of this movement—not just as a cricket league, but as the ultimate proof of concept for what’s possible.
Teams like Mumbai Indians and CSK, once valued at under $100M, are now billion-dollar brands. In 2022: (as per the latest available data)
● Mumbai Indians : $1.3B (from $111M in 2008) Mumbai Indians
● Chennai Super Kings: $1.15B (from $91M in 2008) Chennai Super Kings Cricket Limited
● Rajasthan Royals: $1B (from just $67M in 2008) Rajasthan Royals
This level of appreciation is rare in global sports, and it sparked something bigger.
IPL triggered a full-blown industry. We’re talking:
● $570M in ad revenue in 2023
● 32 M+ concurrent streamers on JioCinema with millions of content creators, merch, and experiences.
Not just that., It inspired leagues across kabaddi, football, and women’s cricket, and is now the cornerstone of India’s sports economy—which is projected to hit $130B by 2030.
The IPL didn’t just redefine cricket. It redefined what’s possible when sport meets ambition, media, and capital. It built a scalable, exportable playbook—and India is only getting started.
If Bollywood was India’s cultural export of the ‘90s, and IT the engine in the 2000s, then sports, powered by the IPL, might just be our defining story of the 2020s.
Practicing the Profession of Sales & Business Development since 25 Years across 🇦🇪 💚 ♻️ 🌍 🇮🇳 📈 Author of Sold for a Living - Every Human has to Sell 💡
5moVery well put across Prashant K. (PK) Gulati 👍🏏👍