ITV

Tag: Prasanna Krishnan

  • ISL piggybacks on EPL’s popularity to gain viewership

    ISL piggybacks on EPL’s popularity to gain viewership

    MUMBAI: Football is attempting to kick up a storm in India. Though it has to withstand the might of cricket in the country, the staunch supporters aren’t backing off.

    India’s successful hosting of the FIFA U-17 world cup has already delivered a massive attendance in the history of the tournament. As per Star Sports India Football Forum (IFF) 2017 data the event was witnessed by 1,347,143 spectators at the six host venues across the country, with average attendance at 25,906. But more than anything else, the WC U-17 has been about the youth getting connected on the ground and in the digital arena. 

    Sony Pictures Network India EVP & business head, Prasana Krishnan said, “The role of broadcasters in India moved away from being a broadcaster to an incubator. We need to expand the market, a country of 1.3 billion people can’t be serviced by a single sport and few select content that is available.”

    Football is also expanding in India through the Indian Super League (ISL), which is believed to have given the sport the impetus it desperately needed. 

    English Premier League (EPL) is the most watched football league in the world in the current scenario. According to ESP Properties senior business director Subhamoy Das,  there is a wide open area for ISL here. Says he, “45 per cent of the EPL audience tuned into ISL 2017-18, the remaining 55 per cent of the EPL viewers is the opportunity for ISL to win over.”

    Broadcast Audience Research Council business head- television Rohit Sarma feels that there is a huge vacuum to fill for Indian broadcasters for sports viewership. He said, “While globally sports contributes 9 per cent of total TV viewership, in India the contribution is currently 3 per cent. This shows that there is immense headroom for growth in this genre on TV. In India, ISL contributes to 60 per cent of the total viewership in football.”

    The digital numbers in terms of viewership in India for football are growing at 3x rate growing from 9 billion minutes in 2014 to 23 billion minutes in 2017 on digital platforms. “In Indian sports context, out of the overall population of 1.324 billion, sports consumption on TV is 741 million and in-stadium attendance is around 4 million,” Das added.

    According to Local Organising Committee tournament director Javier Ceppi, the three building blocks for developing a sport are participation, incentivisation and commercialisation.

    In India, the participation of kids for football is drastically less than that of the UK. According to All India Football Federation, 3.4 million kids play organised football in the UK as compared to a meagre 4000 in India. We have a coach per two lakh people in India and one coach per 55 thousand in the UK.

    The audience of EPL and ISL are very different. EPL is watched by 4-30 years old and ISL attracts 22-50 years old. ISL season 2 and 3 was also watched by 45 per cent females.

    The data provided by ESP Properties pointed out that as per Facebook audience insights, states like Maharashtra, Gujarat, UP, Punjab, Rajasthan and few more can potentially drive up cumulative interest levels towards ISL by 19 per cent.

    Commercialisation in India works well, with around 40 brands regularly investing in sports which includes DHL, Amul, Bisleri, Apollo Tyres and many more.

    La Liga country manager India Jose Antonio Cachaza is working to make the tournament popular in the country. He said, “We are here to bring a La Liga team to India. Indian football fans now don’t just support FC Barcelona or Real Madrid, but also other clubs of La Liga. Our motive is to get it to the number one league in Asia, by investing a lot in grassroots tournament, NGO programmes and academic activities to improve the quality. The main income in La Liga is from the TV rights.”

    Also read:

    Hero ISL S4 opening game saw 59% viewership growth

    DHL renews partnership with Hero ISL

    Mumbai City FC’s sponsorship amount up by 50 %

  • FIFA U-17 draw: Hosts India to take on U.S. in Delhi

    MUMBAI: The official draw for the FIFA U-17 World Cup, which will be played at six venues across India between 6 and 28 October 2017, took place in Mumbai on Friday.

    Telecast rights of this tournament are with Sony Pictures Network India. FIFA World Cup is held every four years, and Sony had bagged the rights in 2014, Sony Six business head Prasanna Krishnan had earlier told Indiantelevision.com.

    Friday’s draw revealed that hosts India will take on the U.S. in their opening match of the competition in New Delhi. Group A also includes Colombia and Ghana, who will also clash as part of the first day’s action.

    Perhaps the most intriguing quartet of teams can be found in Group D, where FIFA tournament debutants Niger were drawn with Korea DPR, Brazil, and Spain.

    The draw ceremony was held in the presence of FIFA Council member Sunil Gulati, All-India Football Federation president Praful Patel and Indian minister of youth affairs and sports Vijay Goel.

    Assisting in the draw ceremony were FIFA Legends Esteban Cambiasso and Nwankwo Kanu, as well as Indian national team legend Sunil Chhetri and Indian badminton star Pusarla Venkata Sindhu.

    One of the highlights of the ceremony was the performance of the tournament’s official song. Pritam and Babul Supriyo revealed ‘Kar Ke Dikhla De Goal’ for the first time, much to the delight of the assembled audience.

    FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 Draw

    Group A: India, USA, Colombia, Ghana
    Group B: Paraguay, Mali, New Zealand, Turkey
    Group C: Iran, Guinea, Germany, Costa Rica
    Group D: Korea DPR, Niger, Brazil, Spain
    Group E: Honduras, Japan, New Caledonia, France
    Group F: Iraq, Mexico, Chile, England

  • U-20 & U-17 FIFA ’19 bidding for host launched, Sony to telecast U-17 in seven countries

    MUMBAI: Broadcasters, OTT/VoD platforms and digital companies are looking forward to entertaining and engaging viewers by providing the best adrenalin. Sports lately is the genre which is in vogue. Leading broadcast and streaming companies are seeking out avenues and sporting event opportunities to keep their dedicated viewers glued to their respective screens.

    On the back of the success of the FIFA U-20 World Cup 2017 in Korea Republic, and with the FIFA U-17 World Cup India 2017 on the horizon, FIFA has launched the bidding process for the next editions of both of its men’s youth competitions – to be staged in 2019. 

    Telecast rights of U-17 FIFA World Cup 2017 to be held in India from 6–28 October are with Sony Pictures Network India. U-20 World Cup 2017 held in the Korea Republic was also telecast in India by Sony Pictures. Apart from India, Sony will air the matches in Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Maldives and Bangladesh. 

    In 2014, Sony had won the media rights for the cyclic event till the next FIFA World Cup to be held in June 2018 in Russia, Sony Six business head Prasanna Krishnan told Indiantelevision.com.

    The FIFA 2019 bidding process for both tournaments recently got under way, with a deadline of 7 July 2017 having been set for FIFA member associations to declare an interest in staging either of the competitions. Member associations are being given the opportunity to bid for both events, however each event will be awarded to a different host.

    After that initial stage in the process, bidding and hosting documents will be sent by FIFA on 14 July to the relevant associations, who will have until 18 August to re-confirm their interest in becoming the tournament’s hosts. Definitive bids must then be submitted by 1 November, with the appointment of each host scheduled for Q4 2017 or Q1 2018 by the FIFA Council.

    The FIFA U-20 and U-17 World Cups are two of FIFA’s oldest competitions, dating back to 1977 and 1985, respectively. Since their inceptions, both competitions have grown in size and stature, adding lustre to the game by producing great attacking football and unveiling exciting players for the future.

    Players who have received the prestigious adidas Golden Ball for their performance at the FIFA U-20 World Cup include Diego Maradona, Robert Prosinecki, Lionel Messi, Sergio Agüero and Paul Pogba, whilst at the U-17 level they include Landon Donovan, Cesc Fabregas and Toni Kroos, to name a few.