The inaugural season of the Women’s IPL is all set to begin in March this year. Ahead of the event, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Monday announced that broadcasting giant Viacom 18 has secured the media rights of the upcoming competition for a whopping deal of Rs 951 crore.
Viacom 18 will hold the broadcasting rights for five seasons till 2027. The BCCI broke the news confirming the deal through a post on their official Twitter.
The BCCI published a tender in December 2022 in order to solicit bids from media organisations for the broadcast rights to the competition, which have been long sought after in Indian cricket. The auction for Women’s IPL media rights was conducted in Mumbai. Viacom has pledged to complete the deal for Rs 951 crore which means Rs 7.09 crore per match during the 2023-27 cycle.
BCCI wrote on Twitter, “The BCCI is pleased to announce Viacom18 Media Private Limited as the successful bidder of Media Rights for the Women’s Indian Premier League (WIPL) Seasons 2023-2027.”
Prior to this, Star Network and Viacom purchased the Indian Premier League’s broadcasting contracts. Starting with the upcoming season, a Men’s IPL match is valued at Rs 118 crore per game. The agreement marks a significant step as it will certainly play a pivotal role in the expansion and growth of women’s cricket in India. Since the news came to light, the Indian cricket fraternity went on to laud the BCCI for securing the massive deal that will help WIPL achieve significant heights.
BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, overwhelmed by the deal, congratulated Viacom for winning the media rights. He further said, “Thank you for your faith in BCCI and BCCI Women. Viacom has committed INR 951 crore which means per match value of INR 7.09 crore for the next 5 years (2023-27). This is massive for Women’s Cricket.”
Voice of Cricket Harsha Bhogle was also excited about the deal.
Rajasthan Royals fielding coach Dishant Yagnik noted, “Great news for BCCI Womens cricket. It’s gonna be a huge success for Women’s IPL (WIPL). Congratulations, Viacom18.”
Former and current cricketers including Anjum Chopra, Jhulan Goswami, and Harmanpreet Kaur were also elated at the prospect.
Here are some other reactions:
The board will unveil the names of the franchises for the five-team competition on 25 January. As per reports, as many as eight franchises out of ten from the Men’s league including reigning champions Gujarat Titans have submitted financial bids in sealed envelopes. Furthermore, the BCCI has also sorted 10 cities as the venues for WIPL 2023.
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