Women's Premier League - statistics & facts

After the gigantic success of the Indian Premier League for men’s cricket, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) launched the inaugural season of the Women’s Premier League in March 2023. The second season in 2024 took place between February and March, with Royal Challengers Bangalore emerging winners after beating Delhi Capitals in the finals.

The first tournament of its kind for women in India

The new Twenty20 tournament franchise in India, with a structure similar to the Indian Premier League, consisted of a total of 30 players, with nine overseas players across five teams. Annbel Sutherland of the Delhi Capitals and Kashvee Gautam shared the most expensive player title that season. Nearly 120 million Indian rupees were spent in the auctions that year, up from only 600 thousand in the maiden season. Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, and Delhi Capitals – existing teams in the men’s IPL bought WPL franchises, while two new teams were formed, namely Gujarat Giants and UP Warriorz. The Adani Group bought Gujarat Giants via Adani Sportsline Private Limited, while Reliance-owned Indiawin Sports acquired Mumbai Indians. Overall, the value of the WPL ecosystem increased by eight present from 2023.

High stakes and higher expectations

Viacom 18 won the broadcast rights for the league until 2028 at 120 million U.S. dollars, while the Tata Group bagged the title sponsorship for a period of five years with an undisclosed amount. The conglomerate was also the title sponsor of the IPL in 2022 at three billion rupees that year. The Women’s Premier League, a literal game-changer and the very first of its kind in India, was played at the cricket stadiums in Delhi and Bengaluru that year. The opening match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Delhi Capitals was preceded by a show featuring performances by A-list Bollywood stars culminating in an appearance by Shah Rukh Khan alongside the team captains. Even though women’s cricket has been around for a few decades, this Twenty20 tournament speaks volumes in terms of commercial recognition, attempting to be on par with its male counterpart franchise. Already, the WPL has become the most lucrative women’s cricketing event in the world.
This text provides general information. Statista assumes no liability for the information given being complete or correct. Due to varying update cycles, statistics can display more up-to-date data than referenced in the text.
Published by Sandhya Keelery, Sep 25, 2024

Key insights

Most expensive team
Gujarat Giants
Team with the highest remaining auction funds
UP Warriorz
Value of broadcast rights
71m INR
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Current statistics on this topic

Distribution of sports audience base in India from November 2023 to January 2024, by sport

TV

Sports viewership share India 2023-2024, by sport

Viewership for Women's Premier League (WPL) on streaming platforms in India in 2023 and 2024 (in millions)

Team Sports

Viewership for WPL on streaming platforms in India 2023-2024

Television rating (TVR) of Women's Premier League (WPL) in 2023 and 2024

Team Sports

TVR of Women's Premier League 2023-2024

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Indian Premier League
Indian Premier League
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Sports market in India
Sports market in India
Indian Super League
Indian Super League

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