MUMBAI: The Indian Premier League (IPL) brand is today worth $5.3 billion, representing a 37% leap in valuation from the 2017 edition, data put out by Brand Finance in its IPL 2018 ranking report reveal.
The findings from the report presented by the London-headquartered valuation company were reported Wednesday by Business Today, a day ahead of its official release.
With a brand value of $65 million and winning the 2018 season title, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have been ranked as the most valuable IPL franchise brand. CSK has topped the Brand Finance IPL league table for the third time, after leading the rankings in 2010 and 2013. “Their brand value has been boosted by CSK creating a fan-base beyond Chennai, despite being forced to endure a two-year ban from the league,” Savio D’Souza, associate director, Brand Finance, told the business magazine.
Last year’s most valuable brand, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) come second in the ranking, with a brand value of $62 million, up 5% from 2017. Sun Risers Hyderabad (SRH) retained their third position with a 17% brand value growth ($54 million). Mumbai Indians (MI) were ranked fourth with a brand value of $53 million. Up 11% to $49 million, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are at number four.
Delhi Daredevils ($44 million), Rajasthan Royals ($43 million), and Kings XI Punjab ($40 million) make up the rear end of the valuation table. All the three bottom rung teams have seen a 10% growth in valuation over 2017.
One of the major boosts for IPL this year, as per the Brand Finance report, was not just television viewership, which grew by 11%, but the fact that 200 million+ people watched the tournament on digital platforms such as Hotstar.
While the business value of IPL as a whole has indeed grown and the franchises are out of the red, the valuation growth of the individual franchises has been modest and they need do to a lot more in order to be highly valued businesses on their own merit, the report notes. “The growth has been more modest for franchise brand values as there is still much to do in fan engagement, merchandising, licensing, trademark protection etc,” D’Souza told Business Today.
