ICC Faces Major Crisis as JioStar Steps Away from $3bn India Media Rights Deal

Just months before the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in India and Sri Lanka, world cricket has been thrown into turmoil. JioStar — the Reliance Industries-owned broadcaster — has formally notified the International Cricket Council (ICC) of its intention to exit its four-year India media rights agreement, a deal originally valued at nearly US$3 billion.

The development, first reported by The Economic Times, poses a serious financial and operational challenge for the ICC, which relies heavily on India for as much as 80% of its global commercial revenues. The governing body is now scrambling to resell rights for the 2026–29 cycle, but steep pricing expectations have so far deterred new bidders.

Broadcasters Reluctant as ICC Seeks US$2.4 Billion for New Cycle

Following JioStar’s decision, the ICC is understood to have approached a mix of global and domestic players including Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI), Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video. However, none have made concrete commitments.

Industry executives say the ICC’s revised target — approximately US$2.4 billion — remains too high given the current dynamics of the Indian media market.

SPNI, once an aggressive bidder in cricket, is now operating cautiously. Even while holding Asian Cricket Council rights and key bilateral packages with New Zealand Cricket and the England and Wales Cricket Board, SPNI has pulled back financially, recently sub-licensing digital rights for the India–England Test series to JioStar to mitigate risk.

Streaming giants continue to tread lightly. Netflix has not yet entered the live cricket domain in India, while Amazon Prime Video’s engagement is limited and its New Zealand Cricket deal is nearing expiration. In Australia, Amazon holds ICC rights until 2027, but expanding into India’s costly cricket ecosystem appears unlikely in the short term.

JioStar’s Mounting Losses Reveal Cracks in India’s Sports Media Model

The crisis also brings into focus the broader economic pressures reshaping India’s sports broadcasting sector. JioStar more than doubled its provision for losses on sports rights in FY2024–25 — from ₹12,319 crore (US$1.4 billion) to ₹25,760 crore (US$2.9 billion). The figures underscore an industry-wide challenge: escalating rights fees amid diminishing monetisation pathways.

Linear TV revenues continue to decline, and streaming platforms — despite unprecedented scale — remain far from profitable.

A major contributor to the downturn has been the Indian government’s ban on real-money gaming (RMG). RMG platforms such as Dream11 and My11Circle had become the single-largest advertisers in cricket. Their exit created an estimated advertising vacuum of ₹7,560 crore (US$840 million), leaving broadcasters with limited options to recover costs.

Before the merger that created JioStar, Star India (the original ICC rights holder) had already posted losses of ₹12,548 crore (US$1.4 billion), primarily due to the ICC deal. These obligations were inherited by the new entity — and quickly became unsustainable.

Global Market Conditions Add to the Pressure

The ICC’s overall financial position appears strong — the body recorded a US$474 million surplus in 2024 — but its reliance on the Indian market leaves it vulnerable.

Meanwhile, global sports broadcasting trends are shifting.
Streaming platforms are investing selectively, focusing on guaranteed-return properties like the NFL, NBA, and the Premier League, rather than high-cost, volatile markets such as India’s cricket ecosystem.

The valuation correction in India mirrors broader recalibrations across the industry. Even as global sports media spending is projected to grow from US$65 billion in 2025 to more than US$78 billion by 2030 (Ampere Analysis), rights holders are being forced to realign expectations, particularly in inflation-heavy and currency-sensitive markets.

Currency fluctuations have further exacerbated JioStar’s burden. With the US dollar now trading above ₹90, the actual cost of the ICC deal has effectively risen to around US$3.3 billion — far exceeding the original commitment.

Past Overvaluation Continues to Haunt the Rights Landscape

The roots of the current crisis lie in the 2022 rights auction. Star India, later merged into Viacom18, ultimately bid around US$3 billion to retain the ICC India rights — more than double SPNI’s offer and nearly triple Viacom18’s standalone bid.

The aggressive valuation, widely viewed as inflated at the time, has proven difficult to justify in today’s market.

The situation was further complicated when Zee Entertainment withdrew from a separate agreement to acquire the ICC TV rights for approximately US$1.5 billion. The collapse of Zee’s merger with SPNI killed the deal, prompting JioStar to initiate arbitration seeking nearly US$1 billion in damages.

Uncertain Road Ahead as 2026 T20 World Cup Approaches

The ICC now faces a tight deadline to resolve its media rights situation ahead of the 2026 T20 World Cup — the organisation’s flagship event and its most commercially significant property.

If no new buyer emerges, JioStar could remain contractually obligated to honour the existing agreement until 2027. However, the very effort to offload the rights signals the ICC’s desire for a more sustainable long-term partner.

The global appetite for sports rights remains robust. Ampere Analysis projects Asia’s sports media spend to rise from US$7.2 billion in 2025 to US$9.9 billion by 2030 — with Indian cricket still a major driver.

Yet, in the immediate future, uncertainty dominates.
The ICC must now reassess its valuation strategy, adapt to rapid shifts in the Indian media economy, and secure a partner capable of delivering both reach and financial stability.

With time running out, cricket’s most influential market is witnessing one of its most significant rights disruptions in decades — and the ripple effects could reshape global cricket broadcasting for years to come.