Viacom18 was awarded the media rights to the Women's Indian Premier League (IPL) for the years 2023-2027 on Monday. Viacom18 won the rights in an auction in Mumbai on Monday with a bid of INR 951 crore, which translates to INR 7.09 crore per match.
"Congratulations to @viacom18 on winning the media rights to the Women's @IPL. Thank you for putting your trust in @BCCI and @BCCIWomen. Viacom has committed INR 951 crore, which equates to INR 7.09 crore per match over the next five years (2023-27). This is enormous for women's cricket "Jay Shah, BCCI secretary, tweeted.
Viacom18 paid INR 23,758 crore earlier this year to secure digital rights (packages B & C) for the Indian subcontinent for IPL media rights 2023-27. Viacome18 also secured the rights to Australia, South Africa, and the United Kingdom for the same time period.
They also have broadcast rights to the ongoing SA20 franchise league and international cricket in South Africa from 2024 to 2031.
"After pay equity, today's bidding for Women's IPL media rights marks another historic mandate. It is a significant and decisive step toward the empowerment of women's cricket in India, ensuring the participation of women of all ages. A new day has dawned! @ICC @BCCIWomen, #WIPL "Shah elaborated.
The BCCI is set to launch the inaugural edition of the Women's IPL, a five-team affair, in March 2023, after holding the Women's T20 Challenge as an exhibition event from 2018 to 2022. According to various reports, the BCCI will reveal the five WIPL franchises on January 25.
On January 3, the BCCI issued a tender document seeking "reputed entities" to acquire the right to own and operate a team in the Women's IPL through a tender process. It requested that interested parties make a non-refundable payment of INR 5 lakh (approximately USD 6000) by January 21 in order to claim the "invitation to tender" for the same.