The average income of all the IPL franchises excluding Punjab Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Titans registered a sharp 23% decline in FY 2023 (financial year) compared to FY 2019 (pre-COVID era).
A report published by a market intelligence platform PrivateCircle suggests that Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered the highest drop in revenue - 38% whereas Mumbai Indians, owned by the Reliance group registered the least drop of 9%.
The report also revealed that the advertisements between the fixtures during the 2023 season of the Indian Premier League contributed to 17% of the total revenue made by all the franchises.
Notably, the Indian Premier League is one of the most viewed sporting spectacles in the country. The ongoing 17th season of the cash-rich league tournament registered a viewership of 35 crore during its first 10 games as per its official broadcasters.
Hence, business conglomerates as well as budding start-ups invest heavily in the tournament to lure consumers and earn profit.
Notably, the Faf du Plessis-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) finished as the top franchise to earn the most income via sponsorship in FY 2023.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) stood second on the list with INR 78 crore whereas the GMR Group and the JSW Group-owned Delhi Capitals (DC) made INR 72 crore out of sponsorship in FY 2023.
Chennai Super Kings, who are the joint-most successful team in the history of the competition in terms of title wins seem to be succeeding outside of the playing field too. They witnessed a 19% spike in their sponsorship income in FY 2023 compared to FY 2022.
Moreover, the RPSG group-owned Lucknow Super Giants witnessed an eye-popping 562% growth in revenue via sponsorships in FY 23 compared to their inaugural IPL edition (2022).
Notably, the decline in the overall income suggests that the IPL market might be nearing its saturation point. The report underlines the "over-saturation of cricket content, changing consumer preferences, or competing entertainment options" as the reasons behind the decline.
