“IPL Generates More Revenue Than English Premier League”: BCCI President Sourav Ganguly

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is one of the fastest growing sports tournaments in the world and it enjoys a massive fan following. Every cricketer in the world looks to play in the tournament and fans flock to the stadiums whenever there is a match.

Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly has said that he feels really happy to see the sport he loves evolve so much, and he even went on to say that the IPL generates more revenue than the English Premier League (EPL).

“I’ve seen the game evolve, where players like me earned a few hundreds and now have the potential of earning crores. This game is run by the fans, by the people of this country, and by the BCCI, which was formed by cricket fans. This sport is strong and will continue to evolve. The IPL generates more revenue than the English Premier League. It makes me feel happy and proud that the sport I love has evolved to become so strong,” said Ganguly at India Leadership Council Event while speaking to Deepak Lamba, CEO, Worldwide Media, President, Times Strategic Solutions Limited.

The IPL 2022 was held on a bigger scale this year with the addition of two new teams — Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. After a 74-match season, it was the debutants Gujarat Titans who walked away with the title after defeating Rajasthan Royals in the summit clash.

During the event, Ganguly was also asked about his leadership style. Speaking on the same, he said: “Captaincy, to me, is leading a team on the ground, and leadership, to me, is building a team. So, whether I worked with Sachin, Azhar, or Dravid, I didn’t compete with them; instead, I collaborated with them as leaders and shared responsibility.”

On being asked about what’s common between being captain and managing BCCI, Sourav replied, “I believe that the common thing is managing individuals. This country has exceptional talent, ranging from young players to young corporate employee. I genuinely believed that if I wanted to be the captain of a successful team, I had to respect my colleagues so that they could become good players, and that it’s never the other way around; you can’t keep everything to yourself and expect good things to happen; it won’t happen.”

Ganguly represented India in 113 Tests and 311 ODIs. He had also led India to the 2003 World Cup final where the side fell short against Australia in the summit clash.