Global cricket media rights set to reach $2BN by 2021
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Joseph O'Halloran
| 23 April 2019

Global media rights for cricket topped $1 billion for the first time in 2018 and its future could be optimised further with significant changes to how the sport is run as digital innovation accelerates, says a new report from Media Partners Asia.

In The Future Of Cricket study, The analyst calculated that three key markets – India, Australia and England – accounted for 90% of the value of cricket’s global media rights in 2018 and forecasts that the value of global media rights will reach $1.7 billion in 2019, driven by the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup in June. MPA estimates that cricket’s valuation will top US$2 billion in 2021, with the ICC T20 Cricket World Cup likely to be held in India that year.

MPA sees the game’s growing value is largely due to cricket’s youngest and shortest format, Twenty20s (T20s) and especially the IPL. Even though the popularity of test cricket in particular is declining, with both stadium attendance and TV viewership eroding steadily over the last five years, the analyst adds that a critical mass of traditional fans still follow test cricket and that a revenue surge is possible if cricket boards and authorities implement structural changes while reallocating resources to meet global potential and growing consumer demand.

“Cricket is Asia’s biggest sport in terms of viewership and has successfully absorbed three different game formats,” said MPA executive director Vivek Couto. “Audiences and fans have moved rapidly to shorter formats, allowing new avenues for monetisation as digital distribution accelerates. Cricket boards now need to harness new audiences and markets as digital content formats open up for monetisation.”

Going forward, The Future Of Cricket study identifies four main growth drivers for cricket: digital innovation; cricket clubs; a well-defined calendar and formats; Women’s and youth-based cricket.