In the competitive world of cricket, the Indian Premier League has always stood out from the rest. From its inception in 2008, the IPL has become the most-attended cricket league in the world ranking 6th in average attendance in all sports league in 2014.

The IPL was also the first sporting event to be broadcasted live on YouTube and just last year, its brand value is already worth more than $6.3 billion. Today, the IPL is considered the biggest T20 league in the world as proven by these five trends:

1. The IPL viewership has grown immensely throughout the years

In 2017, Star India acquired five years of exclusive broadcasting and digital rights for the Indian Premier League in a $2.55 billion deal. It was reported that viewership in the 2018 IPL season increased by 15% and total viewership for both digital and TV increased by 29%, according to Star TV. This immense growth is also credited to the IPL being aired in various regional languages like Tamil, Bengali, Gujrati and Telugu, which helped cricket reach a wider audience all through India.

2. More women are now enjoying the IPL

75% of the people who watched the IPL in its first season were men and only 25% were women. But this number has changed over the years with more women now enjoying and appreciating a good game of cricket. In 2017, 41% of the IPL’s total viewers were women and last year, this number increased to 42% and is expected to grow even further in the IPL 2019. Some of these women are not only enjoying the matches, they are also learning how to support their favorite teams and predicting IPL odds by following the games.

3. The younger generation comprises a good chunk of the IPL’s audience

While most cricket fans are in their 30s or 40s, a recent survey discovered that audiences between the 2 to 21 years old are already making up a good percentage of cricket viewers. Most of the credit goes to the increased accessibility of televisions and the influence of parents who love watching cricket to their children.

4. Advertising in the IPL has soared throughout the years

From smartphones to online shopping, the IPL has attracted a lot of advertisers from around the country throughout the years. In fact, the number of advertised brands in the IPL has grown from just 138 to 247 in just three years, a 79% growth that is expected to soar higher in this year’s IPL season.

5. The IPL is now more than just a form of entertainment

“Cricketainment” is a term that was used to describe the IPL in the past few years. After all, many considered the- sport as only a form of entertainment and not a real competitive sport.

But the IPL is now widely accepted as a major sporting league and being marketing as a serious cricket competition that involves professional players, strict rules and real titles. This has prompted many cricket fans who used to only watch the start and end of games to follow matches closely, especially those who are avid fans of these games.

The Journey of the IPL Continues

There is no doubt that the IPL is now the biggest T20 league around the world, but it is still relatively small when compared to other major sports leagues. For instance, the IPL only has eight teams playing in 60 matches throughout the season, and this is in a country with a population of 1.3 billion people.

The English Premier League for football in England is comprised of 20 teams playing in 380 games in a country with only 55 million people. In terms of broadcasting revenue, the NFL still reign supreme with more than $7.3 billion in revenues each year, 14 times what the IPL is earning for broadcasting. But while the league has still a long way to go in terms of conquering the global stage, being cricket’s premier league is a good first step in achieving that goal.

Major changes are also likely to be seen after the end of the IPL season in 2022 when its current broadcasting contract also expires. Two teams will most likely be added to its roster and 74 games will be played instead of the usual 60 matches. If implemented, this will follow the format used in 2011 that used ten sides instead of just eight. Manoj Badale, Rajasthan Royals’ lead owner has high hopes for the future of the IPL saying: “I would be surprised if there were not more teams, but also hopefully a clearer slot in the international calendar.”