Mumbai: The mini-auction for the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) delivered a record-equalling highest viewership on television with 22.8 million viewers, up 29% from last year, to watch live. Stay connected with Stars Sports. The players’ bid is equal to the highest viewership for any ‘mini’ auction in the history of BARC. The auction, which lasted over 6 hours, was held at the Coca Cola Arena in Dubai and was watched by a record-equalling viewing time of 0.92 billion minutes. This represents a 57% increase in total watch time for the event compared to last year. The auction was broadcast by Star Sports in 5 languages with extensive lead-up coverage ahead of the auction, including expert analysis and fan activation across linear and digital platforms. The IPL 2023 live telecast on Star Network was watched by 505 million unique viewers on TV, the highest for any edition of the tournament. An additional 2.2 million viewers tuned in for the overall coverage of the IPL Auction 2023, including the live event, which included the curtain-raiser on the eve of the auction and “Cricket Live – Auction Special”, live shows before, during and after the event. . , The IPL 2023 live telecast on Star Network was watched by 505 million unique viewers on TV, the highest for any edition of the tournament. The most-watched moments of the IPL auction 2024 were the headline-grabbing bidding wars for Australian stars Pat Cummins and Mitchell Starc, who were bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders for over Rs 20 crore respectively. CSK’s winning bid of Rs 14 crore for New Zealand all-rounder Daryl Mitchell also featured among the 3 most watched moments of the auction. Speaking on the viewership of IPL Mini-Auction 2024, a Star Sports spokesperson said: “A record-breaking year for cricket viewership on Star Sports has ended on a high with the IPL auction. The response to the auction also serves as a great start to IPL 2024 and reinforces the strong association of the prestigious event with Star Sports. “A distinctive element in this year’s auction coverage was the integration of fans’ emotions into our coverage, in line with the efforts of the BCCI and IPL teams to integrate fans into the proceedings at the venue. The success of the auction provides an early taste of Star Sports’ coverage and reinforces our confidence in the continued growth of this iconic cricket program on TV.”
IPL auction 2024: 29% increase in TV viewership compared to 2023
