IPL chairman Arun Dhumal believes the value of the media rights may reach $50 billion

If the IPL chairman, Arun Dhumal, continues to innovate and improvise while keeping the interests of the fans in mind, he thinks the league’s media rights value might reach an incredible $50 million over the course of the next 20 years.

The league’s current media rights valuation is $6.2 billion (about Rs 48000 crore) for a five-year term beginning in 2022.

Even by this measure, the Indian Premier League (IPL) is the second most valuable league behind the National Football League (NFL), as the American sports league inked a $110 billion television agreement that will run for 11 years beginning this past year.

Speaking at the RCB Innovation Lab’s Leaders Meet India here, Dhumal said, “If I have to see how it has gone over the last 15 years and if I have to go by estimates going forward, we are expecting media rights (of the IPL) to go somewhere close to $50 billion by around 2043.”

In addition, Dhumal—a former treasurer of the BCCI—pinned his expectations for financial gain on the introduction of the Women’s Premier League (WPL) and cricket’s participation in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.

“It is imperative that we continue to innovate, improve fan engagement, and elevate the caliber of games,” he said.

“I see a lot of hope and light at the end of the tunnel now that cricket is included in the Olympics and the WPL is taking women’s cricket to a new level,” Dhumal said.

From Rs 6000 crore in 2008 to the present decade and a half, the value of the IPL’s media rights has increased rapidly, surpassing that of numerous other big international sports tournaments.

Dhumal examined the IPL’s expansion and soaring popularity.

The Indian Premier competition is the world’s most watched cricket competition. For me, the Indian Premier League is the greatest Made in India brand that has emerged since independence.

“There are many different states, cultures, and languages spoken in our nation. However, the IPL is one platform that is so deeply ingrained that it allows you to present India to the world,” he said.