For both men’s and women’s global International Cricket Council (ICC) events, the ICC has confirmed Disney Star as the bid winners in India who’ve bagged both television and digital broadcasting rights for the next four years starting in 2024 which sees them through till the end of 2027.
The rights for the ICC events this time round had been categorized into different packages; one for TV only, one for digital only, one for both, over four and eight years, and men’s and women’s events were treated separately.
Sony, Viacom and Zee are the other there broadcasters who are believed to have put bids. But it was Disney Star who won following a single-round sealed bid process which has generated a vital uplift to the rights fee from the previous cycle which expresses the remarkable growth and reach cricket has seen over the years.
ICC Chairman, Greg Barclay said, “We are delighted to continue to partner with Disney Star as the home of ICC cricket for the next four years which has delivered an outstanding result for our Members and will support our ambitious growth plans. They will play a crucial role in the future of our sport and connecting and engaging with more fans than ever before.
“Having a broadcast and digital partner for women’s events in India is a significant step forward in our ambition to accelerate the growth of the women’s game. Disney Star presented impressive plans for the promotion of women’s cricket and they clearly share our vision so I’m incredibly excited by the size of the opportunity ahead.
“This was an incredibly competitive process, which isn’t surprising given the huge audiences that cricket consistently attracts with more than a billion fans that passionately follow the game globally. I’d like to thank all of the bidders for their interest in and support of cricket.”
Country Manager and President of Disney Star, K Madhavan said, “We are delighted at being able to continue our association with the ICC and look forward to strengthening our partnership by growing the sport of cricket in the years ahead.
“With the acquisition of the ICC Digital and TV broadcast rights, Disney Star has further strengthened its status as the premier destination for marquee cricket events in the country.”
The ICC has not revealed how much Disney Stars’ bid was worth, but it is expected to be higher than the $ 1.44 billion benchmark number set for four years by the ICC. The last set of ICC rights was also owned by Star and was worth approximately $ 2.1 billion, but that was for an eight-year cycle with the market being a lot different when those rights were sold.
Disney Star having won the bid are set to broadcast 4 Twenty20 (T20) World Cups (a couple each in men’s and women’s event), 2 One-day International (ODI) World Cups (one each in men’s and women’s event) and a couple (1 each in men’s and women’s event) of Champions Trophy tournament which again is in the 50-over or ODI format.
The ICC next strategies to go to the United States and United Kingdom markets, around the same time and before Christmas this year, with the rest of Asia to follow after that.
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