MUMBAI: The Hero Indian Super League 2020-21 registered a viewership increase of 16% in the opening week – covering the first eight matches – as compared to the previous season, Star India, ISL’s official broadcast partner in India, announced Thursday.
The growth is universally seen across markets, the broadcaster declared.
“Hero ISL 2020-21 returned in a new 11 team avatar raising the competition a notch higher. The highly anticipated Kolkata Derby between SC East Bengal and ATK Mohun Bagan made its debut in the top tier league. This is the highest viewership recorded for the legendary rivalry match and is ~10X the viewership this fixture garnered in the Hero I-League in January 2020 at an all-India level,” the company stated.
Hero ISL 2020-21 is being live broadcast in 83 countries across TV and digital platforms. Star India airs the tournament in seven languages. It can also be seen live on Disney+ Hotstar VIP and JioTV.
“We are thrilled to deliver a blockbuster opening week of the Hero ISL 2020-21. After a successful Dream11 IPL 2020, we laid emphasis on an enhanced viewing experience for football by stressing on product innovations, improved story-telling and fan engagement. We hope to maintain the momentum and build on the gains in viewership in Week 1. Hero ISL 2020-21 has also set the precedence for other sporting events to resume in India by following the highest safety standards.” said Sanjog Gupta, head – Sports, Star India.
