The Indian Premier League (IPL) and the English Premier League (EPL), are among the two of the most prominent sports leagues in the world, each having a massive global following, and generating good amount of revenue every year.
In this article, we’ll compare both these famous leagues, and will explore which one is a bigger business success among IPL vs EPL.
Introduction
IPL (Indian Premier League)
IPL, established by BCCI (Board of Control of Cricket in India), has transformed the way of playing cricket with its fast paced Twenty20 format. It is an annual T20 or Twenty20 men’s cricket league that takes place in India.
The cricket tournament happens between 10 teams in the entire season and takes place between March to May month (typically around 47 days) every year.
To know more about how IPL teams work and make money, visit our article IPL Business Model, for the same.
EPL (English Premier League or Premier League)
On the other hand, EPL is a totally different sports league. Established in 1992, it is known as the pool of football clubs, which is known for its popularity and global fan base and widespread broadcasting rights.
It stands as the most watched football league in the world. EPL is scheduled for nine months, i.e., from August to May, and is contested by 20 clubs.
EPL, is a part of the Big Five, which represent the five biggest football leagues in Europe, with Germany, France, Spain, and Italy joining England.
Each team plays 38 matches, two against each other, one home and one away. Most of its games are also played on Saturdays and Sundays afternoons, with occasional weekday evening fixtures.
Names of 20 clubs of EPL:
- Arsenal,
- Aston Villa,
- Bournemouth,
- Brentford,
- Brighton and Hove Albion,
- Burnley,
- Chelsea,
- Crystal Palace,
- Everton,
- Fulham,
- Liverpool,
- Luton Town,
- Manchester City,
- Newcastle United,
- Nottingham Forest,
- Sheffield United,
- Tottenham Hotspur,
- West Ham United,
- Wolverhampton Wanderers,
- Manchester United.
Earlier, it was used to believe that the game football is watched by nearly 4 billion people globally, and IPL is watched by only 2 billion people, and by this EPL should do better in the business landscape, however the tables have turned! Now IPL seems to beat EPL on several aspects.
Per Match Broadcast Value Comparison
Global fan base, number of teams or clubs, or population of people watching football more than cricket, are not the only reasons which can help in knowing which one among the two is more superior. Also the per match broadcast value serves as the major reason for the comparison.
IPL’s total valuation in 2023 stood at $10.7 million, which was a 28% increase from $8.4 billion in 2022, according to the report by MoneyControl. Also the total brand value of IPL since its first season in 2008 has increased by 433% till date.
- IPL’s per match broadcast value as of March 2024 is amounted to be $14.2 million (Rs.118.5 crore), and stands at second number in the list of global sports leagues.
- Whereas, EPL’s per match broadcast value is reported to be $11 million (Rs.91 crore) as of March 2024, and stands at the third spot in the global sports leagues list.
These numbers clearly indicate that IPL has beat EPL in terms of broadcast value at the global level. According to the former CEO of Chelsea and MD of Duff & Phelps, Trevor Birch, IPL has maintained its relevance separate from all the teams under it, and is a standalone brand.
While in other countries, the individual teams like Chelsea or Man City are bigger names or brands than EPL itself.
Now, we’ll move on to another factor of comparison between the two, i.e. the revenue comparison, which will help in knowing better about which one is leading.
Revenue Comparison
Here we’ll see the revenue of some of the richest clubs in the EPL within a certain interval of time, and the revenue made by each team in IPL over the years.
Revenue and Valuation of Clubs in EPL
| Club | Revenue | Valuation |
| Manchester City | $815 million | $4.99 billion |
| Liverpool | $793 million | $5.29 billion |
| Manchester United | $799 million | $6 billion |
| Chelsea | $642 million | $3.1 billion |
| Tottenham Hotspur | $591 million | $2.8 billion |
| Arsenal | $490 million | $2.26 billion |
| West Ham United | $340 million | $1.08 billion |
| Leicester City (The team was relegated from the league last season, i.e., transferred to the lower division of the league, and now plays in championships ) | $285 million | $781 million |
| Everton | $242 million | $744 million |
| Newcastle United | $240 million | $794 million |
| Aston Villa | $238 million | $756 million |
| Crystal Palace | $214 million | $806 million |
Here are the richest clubs in the EPL with their revenue and valuation.
Manchester city is the top club in the EPL, which has collected a good amount of revenue lately, as compared to other clubs as of February 2024.
Now we will look at the revenue of different teams in the IPL.
IPL Teams Revenue
| Team Name | Revenue in 2021-22 | Revenue in 2022-23 |
| Delhi Capitals | Rs.375 crore | Rs.367 crore |
| Mumbai Indians | Rs.323 crore | Rs.359 crore |
| Chennai Super Kings | Rs.349 crore | Rs.292 crore |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | Rs.315 crore | Rs.273 crore |
| Royal Challenger Bangalore | Rs.293 crore | Rs.247 crore |
| Punjab Kings | Rs.285 crore | Rs.276 crore |
| Lucknow Super Kings | Rs.45 crore | Rs.286 crore |
| Gujarat Titans | Rs.23 crore | Rs.360 crore |
Revenue numbers for Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad aren’t available. However, the net worth of Sunrisers Hyderabad is Rs.498 crore and is the fifth richest franchise in the IPL.
Revenue of teams in IPL dropped in FY23 as compared to their numbers in FY22, however, some of the teams have witnessed growth too, like Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Kings. All this hasn’t affected the position of IPL in the global landscape and it is still ahead of EPL in many terms.
Viewership Comparison
As both the leagues are watched by a global audience, viewership forms a major factor in comparing these two super prominent sports leagues.
- IPL as per the latest numbers of 2024, has a viewership of 546 million for 67 matches, with more numbers yet to come. This season was named as the largest ever season in terms of audience reach on TV as well as on digital platforms.
- IPL total viewership in 2022, stood at 400 million, which was a 26 percent jump in its ratings. Whereas, in 2023, IPL viewership hit a bigger number, i.e. 449 million on its network.
- In comparison to it, EPL was among the most favorite sports leagues at a global level. The current number represents that the league has an attendance of 38,181 people, in which 643 million people watched live broadcast per match.
- In 2018/19, the league in the US has an viewership of 457,000, whereas in 2019/20 it had a viewership of 462,000.
The viewership indicates that both the sports leagues are watched by many, and EPL has more viewership than IPL. One of the prime reasons for this difference is that, IPL is only held for around two months while EPL is held for nine months.
By looking at the per match broadcast value, revenue, IPL seems to be a bigger sports league as compared to EPL. IPL with time has attracted a bundle of international attention and has been one of most talked about sports leagues globally. Not only this, IPL has even made players more richer, both at domestic and international levels, because of its league structure which is way more different than IPL.
Now we’ll have a comparison of both the leagues based on their league structure, features, and more!
IPL vs EPL: Comparison
The two very important differences between the two is the unique operating aspect of IPL, which is the Player Auction and the other one is the Purse Cap in IPL, which can’t be exceeded by any team.
Purse cap is the maximum value that each franchise is allowed to spend on players salaries during the payer auction. Also IPL holds a mega auction every three years which results in the major reshuffling of teams.
Here we’ll look at some other factors of difference between the two.
| Factors | IPL | EPL |
| League structure | Every year, the teams play with each other twice in home away fixtures, and at last the four teams qualify for the playoffs, in a form of knockout tournament. | Here, the 20 teams play with each other twice, also in the home away fixtures. At the end of the season, the team with higher points on the table wins the title. |
| Contract duration | IPL holds auctions of players before each season and each franchise bids various amounts or salaries for the players to have them in their team. Also the players can play for different teams in each season. | Here, in EPL, players usually have a longer duration of their contracts, like 4 to 5 years, and represent one club a season. They can join another team without any transfer fee once their contract is completed. |
| Cost control | It implements a fixed salary cap, which means that in every season each franchise is given the fixed purse cap, within which they have to complete their auction. | In EPL, clubs cannot spend beyond their limit. The basic value over which the clubs cannot spend is 105 million euros over a three year period of time. |
| Team sponsorships | The direct sponsorships of the team constitutes around 20 to 30% to its revenue. The teams are sponsored more by the Indian brands. | Here the brands like Adidas, Nike, and Puma are among the main sponsors for the club. |
Both the sports leagues have their own way of functioning and are different sports leagues. In IPL players get an added feature of playing in multiple teams, whereas in EPL, players are bound with a fixed contract for a certain period of time.
Summing Up
Both the leagues experience a global presence and popularity, however IPL seems to be doing better than EPL in several aspects. IPL has a better per match broadcast value, revenue, operating system, and popularity as compared to EPL, and seems to be a bigger business success.
IPL in its short existence as compared to EPL has grown to numerous heights, be it for the broadcasting value, match popularity, attention from all over the world, and no one ever thought that this T20 league game would be comparable to EPL, the long successful league.
