Lalit Modi raised questions on the current IPL format

Modi’s argument revolves around a simple but powerful idea – fewer matches means less income.

Following the IPL’s expansion to 10 teams in 2022, a full home-and-away system would ideally have resulted in a 94-match season. However, the BCCI has continued with a condensed 74-match format, using a group system.

This 20-match gap, Modi claims, is causing huge losses to the league. Based on the current media rights valuation – around ₹118 crore per match – the IPL is losing out on revenue of around ₹2,400 crore every season. This doesn’t just damage the board; Franchises are also affected.

Under the IPL’s revenue-sharing model, the income from media rights is divided equally between the BCCI and the teams.

This means that each franchisee may lose a significant portion annually. Modi estimates that each team is losing out on about ₹120 crore because the number of matches has been reduced.

“This is not what we sold”: Modi raises concerns over IPL contracts

Apart from the economic aspect, Modi raised another serious issue – whether the current format is in line with the original commitments that were made while conceiving the IPL and selling it to stakeholders.

“This is not what we sold,” he said, explaining that the league was based on the promise of a full home-and-away format where each team plays against every other team twice.

He is confident that this structure was not just a choice but a fundamental part of the IPL’s business model.

“It is a contractual obligation to provide home-and-away matches to the fees they are paying,” he added, suggesting that deviating from this format could raise questions among stakeholders.

Modi also expressed whether all the concerned parties have agreed on the current structure.

“Did everyone sign it? I guarantee they didn’t,” he said, hinting that there may have been disagreements behind the scenes.

He cited the usual justifications such as scheduling challenges and players’ workload as insufficient reasons to deviate from the original plan. In his view, these are only “Excuses” And the real value of IPL lies in maintaining the integrity of its full format.

Interestingly, Modi’s criticism comes at a time when IPL franchises are reaching record valuations. Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) And Rajasthan Royals (RR) Recent deals involving teams such as these have highlighted the immense financial attractiveness of the league.

While Modi acknowledged this growth, he stressed that the IPL is still not working at its full potential.

According to him, expanding the season to include all 94 matches would not only recover the projected revenue loss but would also further enhance the value of the franchise.