The Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) has revealed rough financial figures of the Indian Premier League 2020, further highlighting the success earned by the tournament during a global pandemic. BCCI treasurer Arun Dhumal told Indian Express that IPL 2020 helped the cricket board to earn close to ₹4000 crores in revenue.
Dhumal didn’t give a thorough breakdown of this revenue, but he did insist that there was a 25% rise in the broadcast revenue, while the game between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) received the highest ever viewership for an opening game of the tournament. The BCCI treasurer also confirmed that there were doubts over holding the tournament after Novak Djokovic had tested positive during Adria Tour.
IPL 2020 was postponed in April after the coronavirus pandemic had struck India. BCCI decided to move the tournament to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) after it became clear that it was impossible to stage the competition in India. The teams lived in different biosecure bubbles and they were thoroughly tested throughout the tournament. Dhumal admitted that there were more than 30000 RT PCR tests were conducted on 1800 individuals during IPL 2020. Apart from a few players and staff that tested positive for CSK at the beginning of the tournament, there were no positive cases reported during IPL 2020.
The steady income earned by BCCI from IPL 2020 further highlights the value of this T-20 league, making it the best cricket tournament in the world. The games in Dubai were thoroughly entertaining and tightly contested as the outcome of the group stages of IPL 2020 were not clear until the final league game. Mumbai Indians came out victorious once again, winning their fifth IPL title earlier this month.
IPL is likely to get even bigger next season as BCCI is reportedly looking to add a ninth team to the competition. There has been no official confirmation from the board, but murmurs in media suggest that there could be a mega auction if a new team is added. It remains to be seen whether the T-20 League will be held in India or once again moved to the UAE.