Indian sports industry spends cross Rs 14,000 crore in 2022: Report
Cricket, according to the report, continues to dominate the Indian sports sponsorship landscape, contributing to 85 per cent of the sponsorship spends.
Star cricketers Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar and Olympians Neeraj Chopra and PV Sindhu feature among the top athletes in sports celebrity brand endorsement.
The Indian sports industry witnessed significant growth in 2022, with spends crossing over Rs 14,000 crore, according to a report on the sports sponsorship in the country.
As per the Sporting Nation Report, launched by the GroupM ESP, the industry witnessed a total sponsorship spend of Rs 5907 crore, a staggering 105 per cent growth from 2021. The increase in spends was primarily due to the rise in the number of IPL matches, ICC T20 World Cup, Asia Cup, FIFA World Cup, the report pointed out.
Among other events that contributed to the increase in spends include tournaments like PKL, marquee marathons, Maharashtra Open, and Commonwealth Games 2022, according to the report.
Cricket, according to the report, continues to dominate the Indian sports sponsorship landscape, contributing to 85 per cent of the sponsorship spends, while emerging sports like football, kabaddi and marathon have seen a massive upsurge in the sponsorship spends, contributing to the remaining 15 per cent.
Reflecting on the development, Prasanth Kumar, CEO – GroupM South Asia, said: “The Indian sports ecosystem is experiencing a revolutionary transformation, with athletes becoming influential role models for the youth and sports sponsorships gathering immense momentum. Despite facing unprecedented pandemic challenges, the exceptional performance of the sports industry in 2022 reflects its resilience and unwavering commitment.”
Kumar further said: “As we move forward, technology will play an increasingly pivotal role in content management and fan engagement, while opening new and exciting opportunities in sports. Live sports will continue to be highly coveted as monetizable properties, making it a promising sector for investment.”
It also noted that the sports celebrity endorsement market in India has seen significant growth, with a 20 per cent increase with total value of Rs 729 crore. Significantly, it said 85 per cent of the total brand endorsement value has come from cricketers.
tar cricketers Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar and Olympians Neeraj Chopra and PV Sindhu feature among the top athletes in sports celebrity brand endorsement. On the other hand, Tokyo Olympics gold winner Neeraj Chopra and double Olympic medallist PV Sindhu continue to be leading the non-cricketing athletes leading the endorsement deals.
Aside from cricket leagues, the successful hosting of several other tournaments like Indian Super League, Pro Kabaddi, the Commonwealth Games, Prime Volleyball League, and Ultimate KhoKho, along with the return of marathons and the Women’s Indian Open Golf tournament also helped in building a diverse sports content portfolio in the country.
The Indian Express