Does the answer lie in converting the IPL to IPL Inc, and incorporating the League? As the promoter, the BCCI could retain 40% of equity. Forty per cent could be parcelled out equally between the eight franchises. If new franchises come in in later years, the capital base could be expanded and fresh equity could be issued. The BCCI could subscribe to some of the new shares to ensure its holding never falls below 40%. The franchises could collectively own 40%. The remaining 20% could be sold to institutional investors or, at an appropriate time, to common folk through an IPO.

The IPL board of directors could appoint a professional CEO and managers to run the League, negotiate broadcast and sponsorship deals, supervise the logistics and so on. These executives could be paid a salary and bonuses should they deliver exceedingly good revenues. The BCCI's principal source of earning would be dividends from the IPL, which it could then use to support conventional cricket. The BCCI would continue to remain a not-for-profit entity, while the IPL would be a for-profit company. Read More

Jyothi Shankaran

    Jyothi’s last role was as Senior Editor with the business news channel Bloomberg TV India. He also worked as News Editor at business-standard.com, the online version of the business newspaper Business Standard. Jyothi is a chemical engineer from the Regional Engineering College, Srinagar.