Industry Odisha Bureau, Oct 12: JioStar’s vice-chairman expects strong growth in Indian sport over the next 10–15 years. But costly media rights and weak monetisation mean investors need patience and innovation.
India’s sports industry holds major long-term investment potential, JioStar vice-chairman Uday Shankar said. Speaking at APOS Sports Edge 2026, he urged investors to look beyond quick returns. Patience and innovation, he argued, are essential to unlock that value.
Shankar expects cricket and other sports to grow over the next 10–15 years. Investors, however, should not expect to cash out within five years, he said. Capital alone will not build lasting sports businesses, in his view.
He cited the Indian Premier League as an example of what patient investment can achieve. Its value was built gradually, through sustained investment in audiences and franchises. Shankar also credited the Board of Control for Cricket in India for the sport’s growth.
Indian sport is no longer a cricket-only market, Shankar said. He put the IPL’s audience at about 650 million people. Kabaddi, he said, draws around 450 million viewers. Those numbers point to room for building other sports and leagues.
Large audiences, however, do not automatically translate into profits. Shankar said media-rights costs have climbed sharply. Advertising revenue and subscription yields have failed to keep pace. That mismatch strains broadcasting economics.
India’s subscriber base is vast, but revenue per subscriber stays low. He attributed this to consumers’ limited ability to pay. Affordability therefore limits how much broadcasters can charge.
Media companies, he said, must bid more carefully for premium sports rights. They also need new ways to earn from their audiences.
Competition for advertising adds further pressure. Technology platforms are now chasing the same ad budgets as traditional media firms.
Shankar did see one encouraging shift in distribution. Linear television is shrinking, while connected TV is growing rapidly. Connected TV streams content to internet-enabled television sets. Digital distribution could open new routes to reach and monetise viewers.
Shankar also questioned cricket’s crowded international calendar. He argued it was often not designed with fans in mind. High-profile contests continue to attract strong audiences. But matches between top sides and much weaker teams can struggle to excite.
He favoured simplifying the game by reducing the number of formats. He did not specify which format should go. Shankar also admitted a personal fondness for Test cricket.
Still, he credited T20’s pace, excitement and unpredictability with driving cricket’s growth. He acknowledged that sports authorities dislike using the word “fun”. Sport, he said, must be fun, especially in India. It has to bring fans joy and excitement.
For investors and broadcasters, the message is one of patient discipline. India’s sports audiences are large and still expanding. Turning that reach into profit will depend on careful rights spending. Better monetisation and stronger fan engagement will matter just as much.
