Two decades of compound growth in the Indian Premier League’s cricket media rights are coming to an end, according to a new report from Media Partners Asia.
MPA published ‘IPL: Teams, Rights and Ratings’ on March 24, predicting that the 2028-32 rights cycle will remain flat at a total of $5.4 billion. This would match the current 2023-27 period, but would represent a 13% decrease from $13.2 million to $11.5 million per game. The company attributes the per-game decline to the expanded 94-game format, which increases volume without a corresponding increase in value.
The current cycle itself marked a dramatic jump from 2018 to 2022, when Star India had consolidated rights of $2.55 billion. The 2022 auction will see the rights split into multiple packages for the first time. Viacom18, backed by Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries, paid about $3 billion to secure the digital rights, while Disney paid $3.01 billion to keep the TV. The head-to-head showdown between these two giants was the driving force behind the nearly three-fold increase. This will not be repeated. The subsequent merger of Viacom18 and Disney’s Indian operations created JioHotstar and consolidated all IPL rights on one platform, removing a major source of competitive tension from the market.
According to MPA research, rights holders face cumulative losses of $1.8 billion to $2 billion in the current cycle. Advertising revenue growth has slowed to 7% CAGR over the past three seasons, compared to 18% CAGR in the previous cycle. Along with BCCI’s ban on crypto advertising, policy-driven withdrawals by edtech companies and real money gaming companies have significantly narrowed the advertiser base. MPA notes that new global macro pressures could further weigh on demand, even if emerging sectors such as AI provide some offsetting effects.
At the franchise level, media rights accounted for 75% of total revenue, up from 48% in 2017. EBITDA margins have widened from an average of 10% in the league’s first cycle to 34% now, but MPA warns that this operating leverage will amplify downside risk as rights values are revised. Non-media revenue has grown at a CAGR of 22% since the pandemic, albeit from a lower base. The report says upside is expected to be limited beyond 2028, with sales of franchise stakes accelerating as owners advance their liquidity plans.
Mihir Shah, vice president, India, MPA, said the 2028 rights reset “marks the beginning of an era in which value creation for franchises will depend on building a non-media revenue base with a focus on sponsorship, international presence and digital monetization.” Shah added that owners and investors need to consider both the rights cycle headwinds and the concentration risk they imply when pricing franchises based on current EBITDA multiples, warning that “the window at current multiples may be shorter than the market assumes.”
MPA’s Comprehensive Franchise Scorecard evaluates all 10 IPL teams on championship wins, playoff appearances, social media following, international presence, etc., with Mumbai Indians in first place with 360 points out of 400, followed by Chennai Super Kings in second place with 320 points. Royal Challengers Bengaluru are in fourth place with 230 points. Despite Virat Kohli’s strong social media following of 274 million fans, the club’s tally has been hampered by just one title in 18 seasons, the absence of an international franchise and heavy reliance on a single star. Punjab Kings (90th) and Lucknow Super Giants (100th) are ranked at the bottom of the table.
On the digital front, MPA points out that JioHotstar recently crossed 70 million concurrent users during the ICC T20 World Cup final and further viewership records are expected in the 2026 IPL season. However, the report warns that the size of viewership is not yet generating the monetization needed to support current rights pricing, and the gap between a streaming platform’s revenue and what it spends on rights remains a key factor constraining valuations in 2028.
This report covers the history of IPL media rights from the 2008 auction to the current cycle, with future projections based on MPA’s proprietary financial model. The franchise economic analysis is based on aggregate financial information for seven clubs: Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders, Chennai Super Kings, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings.
