Women's Premier League (cricket)

The Women's Premier League (WPL)[1] is an upcoming women's Twenty20 cricket franchise league in India. It is owned and operated by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).[2]

Women's Premier League
CountriesIndia
AdministratorBoard of Control for Cricket in India
HeadquartersMumbai
FormatTwenty20 cricket
First edition2023
Tournament formatRound-robin and playoffs
Number of teams5
TVSports18, JioCinema
WebsiteOfficial Website

The first season will be played in March 2023 in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai with five franchises taking part.[3][4]

History

The first major women's Twenty20 competition in India was the Women's T20 Challenge. This started as a single-match tournament in 2018, and was expanded to a three-team, three-match competition held in 2019, 2020 and 2022.

In February 2022, BCCI President Sourav Ganguly announced plans to start a women's version of the Indian Premier League, the major men's Twenty20 competition in India,[5], replacing the Women's T20 challenge. By August plans were more advanced[6][7] and in October the BCCI announced that they were considering a five-team tournament which would take place in March 2023.[8][9] This league was informally known as the Women's Indian Premier League; however, on 25 January 2023 the BCCI officially named it the Women's Premier League.[2]

On 28 January 2023, the BCCI invited bids for the league's title sponsorship rights until 2027.[10]

Organisation
Brabourne stadium
DY Patil stadium

The BCCI also organises the men's Indian Premier League (IPL) competition, and the league structure for the WPL is based on the structure of the IPL.[11][12][13]

Initially there will be five teams. The sides will play against each other in a double round robin format, with the three teams finishing with the most points entering the playoff stages of the competition.[14][15] According to the BCCI, the number of games and number of teams will be increased in future seasons if the league is a success.[16]

The first season of the league is scheduled to be played from 4 March to 26 March 2023, and will feature 22 matches, all held at Brabourne Stadium and DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai.[16][17] In each match a team may include a maximum of five overseas players, one of whom must be from an ICC Associate Nation.[3][18][19]

Franchises

Investors brought the initial franchise rights in January 2023 through a closed bidding process, raising a total of ₹4,669 crore (US$580 million).[20][21]

A number of companies responded to the sale of franchise rights which were sold for five years, from 2023 to 2027. Adani Group won the rights to the Ahmedabad franchise for ₹1,289 crore (US$160 million), Indiawin Sports Pvt Ltd, part of Reliance Industries, won the Mumbai franchise for ₹912.99 crore (US$110 million),[lower-alpha 1] GMR–JSW cricket Pvt Ltd won the Delhi franchise for ₹810 crore (US$100 million), Capri Global holdings won the Lucknow franchise for ₹757 crore (US$95 million),[lower-alpha 2] and Royal Challengers Sports Pvt Ltd, a subsidiary of alcohol manufacturing company Diageo, won the Bangalore franchise for ₹901 crore (US$110 million).[lower-alpha 3][22]

According to Jack Genovese of Ampere Analytics, a mediaresearch firm, the league is the world's second highest valued women's sports league just behind the Women's National Basketball Association in the United States.[12]

Team City Owners Head coach
Royal Challengers Bangalore Bangalore Diageo[22] Ben Sawyer[23]
Delhi Capitals New Delhi JSW Group–GMR Group Jonathan Batty[24]
Gujarat Giants Ahmedabad Adani Group Rachael Haynes[25]
UP Warriorz Lucknow Capri Global Jon Lewis[26]
Mumbai Indians Mumbai Indiawin Sports Charlotte Edwards[18]

On 30 January 2023, Mithali Raj joined Gujarat Giants as a mentor.[25] On 2 February 2023, Jhulan Goswami joined the Mumbai franchise as a bowling coach and mentor.[18][27]

Financial background

The BCCI intends to distribute 80% of the profits from the competition among the franchise owners during the first five years. For the next five seasons, 60% of the profits will be shared, and from seasons 11 to 15, 50% of the profits will be distributed. Additionally, 80% of the revenue from the central licensing rights for the competition will be shared with the franchises.

Franchises will also generate revenue through merchandise, ticket sales and advertising.[16][28]

Player auction

The first auction to purchase players for each franchise was held on 13 February 2023 at Mumbai.[18][29] Around 1,500 players registered their names.[30][31] Each franchise had ₹12 crore (US$1.5 million) to spend and had to purchase between 15 and 18 players, seven of whom could be overseas players.[11][18]

The base price of an uncapped player at the first auction was between ₹10 lakh (US$13,000) and ₹20 lakh (US$25,000). For capped players it was between ₹30 lakh (US$38,000) and ₹50 lakh (US$63,000).[19] In future seasons the purse size for each franchise will be increased by ₹1.5 crore (US$190,000) each year.[16]

Broadcasting

In January 2023, Viacom 18, announced it had acquired the global media rights for TV and digital broadcasts for the tournament. The contract will run for five years and was worth ₹951 crore (US$120 million).[32] The initial season of the league will be broadcast in India on the Sports18 TV channel and the JioCinema app, both of which are owned by Viacom 18.[33]

See also

Notes
  1. Reliance also owns the Mumbai Indians franchise in the men's IPL
  2. Capri Global have existing teams in Pro Kabaddi League and International League T20.
  3. The company is the current franchise holder for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the men's IPL

References
  1. @JayShah (25 January 2023). "The @BCCI has named the league - Women's Premier League (WPL). Let the journey begin..." (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. "Women's IPL: BCCI earns Rs 4669.99 crore windfall for 5 teams". Rediff. 25 January 2023.
  3. "'Let the journey begin': BCCI garners Rs 4669.99 crore for sale of 5 Women's Premier League teams". The Times of India. 25 January 2023. Retrieved 26 January 2023.
  4. "CCI, DY Patil to host WPL from March 4-26; Mumbai-Ahmedabad to play opening game". Cricbuzz. Retrieved 14 February 2023.
  5. "BCCI plans to start a full-fledged women's IPL in 2023: Sourav Ganguly". India Today. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  6. Acharya, Shayan (12 August 2022). "Women's IPL: BCCI exploring late February-March 2023 window for the T20 tournament". sportstar.thehindu.com. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  7. "BCCI to hold inaugural Women's Indian Premier League in March 2023". Outlook. 12 August 2022. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  8. "BCCI considers 5 teams, 2 venues, 20 league matches for inaugural WIPL". Cricbuzz. 13 October 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  9. "Inaugural Women's IPL likely to be played from March 3 to 26". ESPN Cricinfo. 9 December 2022. Retrieved 25 December 2022.
  10. "BCCI invites bids for Women's Premier League title sponsorship rights for 2023-2027". Deccan Herald. 28 January 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  11. "Women's Indian Premier League franchises go for £465m". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
  12. "Stunning Prices for Cricket Teams Are a Milestone for Women's Sports". NY times. 26 January 2023.
  13. "'Life changing'..." Fox Sports. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  14. "Game Changer..." The Guardian. 3 February 2023.
  15. "Women's IPL 2023 Format, Rules". Time of Sports. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
  16. महिला आयपीएल लिलावात, ४००० कोटींची कमाई! [Women IPL minted 4000 crore!]. Lokmat (in Marathi). 23 January 2023. p. 6. Retrieved 24 January 2023.
  17. "WPL Auction starts from 13 Feb 2023". Worldcup.org.in. 11 February 2023.
  18. Nagraj Gollapudi (2023) Charlotte Edwards to coach Mumbai's WPL team, CricInfo, 5 February 2023. Retrieved 5 February 2023.
  19. "Haldiram, Infosys, 10 IPL teams among 30-plus companies to show interest in buying teams in Women's IPL: Report". TimesNow. 21 January 2023. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  20. "How Women's IPL auction could change sports in India - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  21. "Owners of Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, RCB win bids to own Women's Premier League teams". ESPNcricinfo. 25 January 2023. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  22. "मिथाली..." [Mithali Raj...]. Jagran. Retrieved 30 January 2023.
  23. "Ben Sawyer named Royal Challengers Bangalore head coach for inaugural WPL campaign". The Cricketer. 15 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  24. "WPL: Jonathan Batty, Lisa Keightley, Hemlata Kala, Biju George in Delhi Capitals coaching staff". ESPNcricinfo. 11 February 2023. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
  25. "WPL: Rachael Haynes joins Gujarat Giants as head coach". ESPNcricinfo. 3 February 2023. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  26. "WPL: England national coach Jon Lewis appointed head coach of WPL team UP Warriorz". ESPNcricinfo. 10 February 2023. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  27. "WPL 2023: Former India pacer Jhulan Goswami snubs Sourav Ganguly's Delhi Capitals for Mumbai Indians, signs as bowling coach and mentor". Inside Sport. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  28. "'Life changing'..." Fox Sports. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  29. "Women's Premier League auction in Mumbai". Times of India. 2 February 2023. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
  30. Gollapudi, Nagraj (6 February 2023). "Women's Premier League to begin on March 4".
  31. "around 1K sing up for WPL auction". news18.com.
  32. "Women's IPL: Viacom 18 wins media rights, to pay INR 7.09 crore per match". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 16 January 2023.
  33. "Women's IPL Media Rights Bagged By Viacom 18 For A Sensational Rs 951 Crore Deal". Latestly. 16 January 2022. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
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