What makes the IPL a more lucrative and safer investment than even the ICC World Cups

At first glance, it seemed unbelievable. Rs 7,090 crore for an IPL team. Social media exploded within seconds and a number of brand experts immediately jumped in terming the bid “insane”. It had captured the national imagination. The BCCI had raked in Rs 12,715 crore for two teams – Gujarat Titans were sold for Rs 5,625 crore – as the Indian cricket moved past the Covid-19 inflicted negativity.

These bids were labelled unreasonable and based on vanity. It was argued that the media rights, which were up for sale the next year, would not go for more than Rs 30,000 crore and hence the new teams will end up losing a lot of money.

The IPL media rights, for the record, went for Rs 48,390 crore, a 300 percent rise from the 2016-17 valuation of Rs 16,347 crore.

The rights for the ICC events, auctioned in 2022 for four years for the Indian market, went for $2.8-3 billion (Rs 24,000 crore approximately) – half of the IPL value.

The question is what makes the IPL a more lucrative and comparatively a safer investment than even the World Cup?

Unlike the World Cup, where things can go wrong on occasions and the popular teams, especially India, could make an early exit, an Indian team wins every night in the IPL. That’s one of the key attractions for the leading global brands.At the 2007 World Cup, for example, the moment India lost, the interest in the tournament nosedived. The broadcaster lost a lot of money and the tournament was anything but a success. Similar script unfolded at the 2021 T20 World Cup in Dubai. Many bookings were cancelled after India’s exit and suddenly the economics of the tournament went haywire.

“In sports, India will lose on occasions and the risk isn’t worth taking,” said a senior corporate whose company has invested in both the IPL and the World Cup.

With the IPL, you can’t go wrong.

“There is something in it for everyone,” said another leading executive about the IPL.

When the legendary Arthur Morris, key member of Don Bradman’s invincible team of the 1940s, was asked what he got out of playing cricket, he negotiated the question with a single-word retort— ‘poverty’. After the arrival of the IPL, cricketers are likely to have a radically different answer to a similar question. Most of them, it could be conjectured, will suggest with a welcome smile, “We became millionaires.”

There’s little doubt that 18 April 2008, will go down in cricket history as the date when the game changed forever.

When it comes to performance, for example, standard is very high. Reputations don’t matter. Consider the case of Sourav Ganguly, arguably one of the most popular Bengalis of all time. It was inconceivable that Ganguly would not be a part of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). When the franchise parted ways with him in 2011, there was a huge backlash in Kolkata. It was predicted that KKR would lose their fanbase, that matches would be played to near-empty stands at Eden Gardens, and Gautam Gambhir would find it impossible to fill Ganguly’s shoes as captain.

And, it started badly for KKR. A couple of games did see poor attendance. However, soon after the team started doing well, the fans returned to fill the stands. Furthermore, once Gambhir led them to the title in 2012 and again in 2014, the bitter Ganguly saga was all but forgotten. Nothing succeeds like success was the mantra and the franchise has since moved a long way forward. In 2023, with the return of the home and away format, every KKR match is sold out despite the team missing several of its star players.

This is what the IPL is: a commercially driven, ruthlessly competitive business proposition with its dedicated base of followers globally and probably the best option for the brands to invest in.