ISL viewership rises by 51% in 2019-20 season

The recently concluded campaign attracted the attention of a lot of fans.

The Hero Indian Super League 2019-20 (ISL), the top tier league in India, echoed the dawn of a new age in Indian football. The tournament opener between footballing powerhouses Kerala Blasters FC and ATK on October 20 saw viewership double as compared to the previous season.

Thrusted with some high-quality football, vociferous fans showing their true love at the stadiums and an equally massive viewership, the Hero ISL 2019-20 continued its climb to the top. At the end of the season, the league recorded a 51% jump in viewership among the urban affluent sports savvy audience of M15+AB Urban as per BARC’s latest report.

With a cumulative reach of 168 million and 261 million impressions (Fig for 2+U+R as reported on BARC) for the 2019-20 edition, Hero ISL has been at the heart of a memorable revolution in Indian football. It was broadcast on 11 channels across the Star Sports and Star India Network in seven languages and digitally streamed on Hotstar and JioTV.

Quite interestingly, the final of the ISL between ATK and Chennaiyin FC saw an unprecedented number of viewers. Amid the coronavirus outbreak, the final game was played at Fatorda Stadium in Goa behind closed doors and the number of viewers on Hotstar touched the four million count.

While the ISL continues to strengthen its base in the country with a lasting impression, Indian football does seem to be on a rise. At least, the increase in the number of spectators and online viewers proves so.

That said, the recently concluded season turned out to be a massive one in terms of its competitiveness. It was a very tense fight between FC Goa - the winners of league-stage, Bengaluru FC - the then defending champions and ATK - the eventual champions.

On the other hand, it was a big surprise for many when Chennaiyin FC showed a resurgent streak that led them straight into the final. Had they managed to clinch the title, it would have been one of the best stories scripted in the ISL.

Yet, as it stands, the league has definitely caught the eye of many and it is only a matter of time when jam-packed stadiums becomes a normal thing.