Indian premier league hits record criket team sales of $703m

The Indian Premier Alliance set a almanac for aggregation sales in a assurance of the growing absorption amid companies to ability the beginning customer classes via the country's best advantageous antic extravaganza.

Sahara Group, an Indian amassed that additionally sponsors the civic candid team, and Rendezvous Sport bygone bought the Pune and Kochi teams for $370m and $333m respectively. The two fresh teams calm netted added than the accumulated authorization of the eight teams the IPL auctioned back the candid clash was launched two years ago.

The absolute eight teams, which were bought in aboriginal 2008 by Bollywood stars such as Shah Rukh Khan and industrialists including Mukesh Ambani, Asia's richest man, fetched amid $60m and $112m for the BCCI. Since then, the barrage of the Twenty20 clash has helped the IPL to body a able all-around admirers and accustomed it to cut bigger deals with advertisers, sponsors and broadcasters.

The aboriginal three matches of the advancing division of the alliance were watched by 37.1m people, 41 per cent college than the cardinal of admirers in the countdown season, according to TAM, India's television appraisement agency.The two fresh teams will accompany the clash in 2011, advocacy the cardinal of amateur to 94, from the absolute 60 if the accepted architecture of the bold is retained.

The IPL is now account added than $4bn, according to London-based Cast Finance. Unni Krishnan, managing administrator of Cast Finance India, said the cast had "the abeyant to abound further".

Sony paid $1bn to own the television advertisement rights for the abutting 10 years and others, such as Vodafone of the UK, accept captured some of the capital TV advocacy slots. This year Google additionally abutting the arrant tournament, signing a accord for an bearding sum to advertisement IPL matches via itsYouTube video website.

"In the abutting one or two years, one will see acquirement from the IPL axial basin constipate or abatement as added teams are launched and antagonism increases," he said.