According to the report, the FS segment is estimated to have generated Rs 5,500 crore as indirect revenue through its vendors and service providers
India’s fantasy sports industry revenue is estimated to have clocked Rs 5,200 crore in FY21 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 38% to Rs 1,65,000 crore by FY25, according to a report by The Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) and Deloitte. Titled, ‘Fantasy Sports: Creating a Virtuous Cycle of Sports Development’, the report highlights how India has become a high-growth, in-focus market for fantasy sports (FS) due to multiple factors including tech-savvy millennial population, growing affiliation with sports, rapid smartphone penetration, availability of low-cost mobile data, among others.
Fantasy sports industry is making huge economic inroads into India’s overall growth and development in multiple ways – creating highly skilled jobs, attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) and generating significant revenue for the exchequer, Anwar Shirpurwala, CEO, FIFS, said. “Recent positive developments viz., Rajasthan Government’s announcement to regulate games of skill, K’taka HC decision quashing law banning games of skill, Union Budget 2022 announcement to set up an AVGC (Animation Visual Effects Gaming Comic) Taskforce and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement on India’s potential to become a global hub of gaming sector, have together laid down a clear roadmap for growth of this industry. In another progressive move for the sports tech ecosystem, the state of Gujarat, in the blueprint of its Sports Policy recently, announced an incubator for sports startups and an athlete welfare programme. This will further bolster the growth of sports industry which has been sidelined from serious bureaucratic conversations till now,” he added.
As per the report, India is the world’s biggest Fantasy Sports market with a user base of over 13 crores. This is further expected to grow at a CAGR of 32% in the coming years. Of this, nearly 30% of the registered user base for FSPs in India is female users, a number that is expected to consistently rise in the next few years, the report estimates. Moreover, 50% of user transactions on the FS platforms have come in through tier 2 and tier 3 cities which not only promotes digital payment literacy but also increased engagement and involvement of the population in sports through the grassroots level.
Cricket, the dominant sports on fantasy sports platforms, might see its share going to other sports such as kabaddi, hockey, football and volleyball which are growing in popularity, but is expected to continue growing at 30% CAGR over the next four years and remain the highest contributor to the overall revenue of the fantasy sports industry. Women’s cricket has also gained popularity with fantasy sports; the first 12 matches of the 2020 ICC Women’s Twenty20 World Cup generated 4.1 crore viewing hours in India, a 213% increase from 2018. During the Phase 1 of the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) alone, the FS industry user base in India grew by over 20 lakh users.
According to the report, the FS segment is estimated to have generated Rs 5,500 crore as indirect revenue through its vendors and service providers. The total revenue attributable to FS (direct + indirect) is therefore Rs 10,700 crore. It may also be noted that the indirect revenue will generate its own stream of GST as well.
For Prashanth Rao, partner, Deloitte India, over the past few years, online fantasy sports has witnessed unparalleled growth and widespread acceptance among Indian sports fans. “By leveraging cutting-edge technology, developed locally, this sunshine sector is now emblematic of the Indian ‘Atma Nirbhar’ vision of self-reliance and growth. I believe that FIFS can help the sector unlock its true potential by encouraging responsible rule-based gaming and contributing to the development of the sporting industry in India,” he highlighted.
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