What can the MLC Learn from the IPL?
The Brabourne Cricket Stadium in India has hosted several IPL games.
The Indian Premier League has been one of the world's most popular sporting leagues since its inception in 2008.
It is the most valuable cricket league in the world, with broadcasting and digital rights worth over $2 billion. The IPL also holds the record for the highest-attended and most-watched league globally, with an average attendance of more than 39,000 fans per game and around 400 million viewers from all over India tuning in throughout the season.
Furthermore, it has increased sponsorship revenue by more than ten times compared to previous domestic leagues. Match-day revenues have multiplied sevenfold due to TV rights, ticket sales, and merchandise. All these facts point towards one clear conclusion - this competition is a huge success!
The IPL set the blueprint for other domestic Twenty20 and short-format competitions, although none have scaled its heights. The Pakistan Super League, the Australian Big Bash, and the Caribbean Premier League have all been successful iterations of the IPL, but can the MLC stand on the shoulders of giants? What can USA Cricket learn from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) or other governing bodies that promote the sport in their country?
IPL Origins: A Crushing Exit Followed by Absolute Glory
Indian team watches on as 2007 ODI World Cup campaign ends in disaster
It's not that the IPL wouldn't happen if India won the 2007 ODI World Cup or that the two outcomes are linked. However, there was deep unrest among Indian cricket fans after a disastrous tournament which saw their country eliminated at the group stage, with Sri Lanka and Bangladesh advancing at their expense.
In the aftermath, there was a hot stream of criticism from all quarters directed at the BCCI. Indian cricketing deity Sachin Tendulkar called it the lowest point for the sport in his country. Fans burnt effigies of the players. The media gave the team and the governing body both barrels in its coverage.
Indian legend and National Cricket Academy chairman, Kapil Dev, spoke out against the BCCI and threw his weight behind the launch of a new but unsanctioned competition - the Indian Cricket League (ICL). It's here where the introduction of the IPL picks up the pace, and the true fault lines of division in Indian cricket are laid bare.
The situation was further complicated by the success of an inexperienced Indian team at the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup in 2007. Suddenly, there was a thirst for a shorter format, and the ICL was about to fill the void.
IPL Origins: Chaotic Beginnings and the ICL
Legends of the game had put themselves forward for the Indian Cricket League (ICL)
The ICL was a rebel competition featuring club teams from India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. An additional contest between a World XI, an Indian XI, and a Pakistani XI was chucked in for good measure. The winning club team would share a prize pool of $1 million, while the mini World Series tournament put up $810,000 for the winners.
It received funding from Zee Entertainment Enterprises but did not have the backing of the BCCI and the International Cricket Council (ICC). Bitter feuding between the BCCI and ICL organisers dominated headlines in India for the year leading up to the launch of the IPL.
A clash with Zee Entertainment Enterprises founder and billionaire Subhash Chandra, a dispute that stretches back to 2000, was one major issue. The bombastic Chandra attempted to buy broadcasting rights for Indian cricket, but he and his company were deemed inexperienced in sports broadcasting by the BCCI, which refused to grant him the rights. Chandra did not take kindly to the rebuff, and a cricketing civil war broke out, with some key figures, such as Dev, backing the new competition and others staying loyal to the BCCI.
Some notable international players signed up for the ICL model with a promise of huge salaries and more limelight than most cricket players were afforded back in the mid-noughties. Australian test cricketer Damien Martyn, New Zealand opener Lou Vincent, and Pakistan test captain Inzamam-ul-Haq had all signed up for the World Series.
It wasn't just in India where fault lines were emerging. New Zealand quick and former world number one bowler Shane Bond had also committed to the competition, sacrificing his international career with the Kiwis in the process. The New Zealand Cricket Council (NZC) banned Bond from representing the Black Caps while he was involved in the ICL project, despite Bond claiming to have express authorisation from the governing body to play in the competition. Bond explained at the time: "I have written permission from them, only then did I join ICL. It's sad that they turned around later. I could have gone to court - and I'm sure I would have won the case - but I feared the Indian board would jump in and force NZC to cough up money if I'd been allowed to play for New Zealand. I didn't want it to get that ugly and chose to let it go."
Ramifications for any player joining the ICL by the BCCI were extreme, ranging from an outright ban for representing any unsanctioned team to heavy financial fines.
It all proved too much for the ICL, which folded in 2009 after threats from the BCCI saw several withdrawals of top-level talent.
Meanwhile, after acknowledging the success of the ICL, the BCCI quickly cobbled together the IPL, and today's foremost Twenty20 competition was born.
IPL Origins: A Brief Explainer of its Success
The IPL established itself as a crucial part of India's sporting landscape by maximising its viewing figures with creative strategies and implementing innovative team selections.
For starters, broadcasting the matches on television was vital in ensuring that cricket fans across the country could watch their favourite teams compete. The IPL also took advantage of social media, encouraging fans to engage with live matches online and sparking conversations around certain players or moments from the competition.
Furthermore, team selection has been a major factor in the success of the Indian Premier League. Before its launch, cricket in India was dominated by players from elite backgrounds. However, the IPL allowed smaller clubs and lesser-known players to show off their talents by providing them a platform to compete against the top teams. This has allowed people of all backgrounds - including those who may have been unable to access traditional cricket leagues - to participate in the sport, which has been a driving force behind its popularity.
The success of the Indian Premier League shows the power of using modern technology and innovative strategies to promote cricket and make it more accessible to a broad audience. With its combination of traditional values and modern elements, the IPL has become an example for other competitions worldwide.
IPL Origins: Lessons to be Learned
The IPL can be seen as a model for other cricket leagues to follow regarding how best to maximise viewership and create a competitive and fair environment. It has demonstrated how important it is to use technology and social media to reach a wider audience and ensure that teams have diverse and talented players who can bring something unique to the competition. As the most-watched cricket competition in the world, the IPL has set an example for other leagues to follow.
The BCCI had to see off a rival to maintain the sport's integrity. We see examples of a civil war in golf, where elite-level talent are subject to a tug-of-war between the PGA and the Saudi-backed LIV Golf project. USA Cricket must commit full throttle to the MLC. That means standing steadfastly behind the vision and protecting players that participate.
Here are five lessons for the MLC to learn from the IPL:
Protect the MLC brand's integrity at all costs.
Secure a TV rights deal to make it as accessible as possible to the global public.
Engage with the fans and listen to feedback.
Create pathways for younger players and local talent to make a name for themselves.