India’s fantasy sports industry, which saw revenues almost tripling to Rs 6,800 crore since FY20, is expected to grow at a 30 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to reach Rs 25,240 crore by FY27, a report by Deloitte India and the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) revealed on Tuesday.
Fantasy sports is an extension of the real-world sporting event, where players get to engage with the sport instead of mere passive viewing. India boasts over 300 fantasy sports platforms (FSPs) and 18 crore users, making it the fastest-growing market worldwide, with a user base nearly triple that of North America. The user base is expected to hit 50 crore by FY27, recording a growth of 23 per cent CAGR. The industry is essentially young, with 40 per cent of the user base in the 25-34 age group, evenly split across metros and non-metros and predominantly male.
The growth comes on the back of infrastructural and market-driven factors including increased improving digital infrastructure and rural digital penetration, investments, the introduction of new sports and leagues on existing platforms and rise of new platforms. Interestingly, growth in UPI payments has led to 110 million paid online gamers in India, second only to e-commerce. The sector is adding two million paid users per month with 60 per cent of transactions on FSP coming from tier-2 and 3 cities and beyond.
According to Mitesh Gangar, Co-Founder and Director, PlayerzPot, this year, the free IPL streaming by Jio has added to the popularity of fantasy sports. "It has significantly increased viewership and eventually boosted fantasy sports participation in India. We have already witnessed a surge in the new & returning user base," he added.
As a sunrise sector, fantasy sport has attracted both domestic and global investors, with Rs 15,000 crore in investments in the form of foreign direct investment (FDI) till FY22 which is expected to touch Rs 25,000 crore by FY27. The industry, currently valued at Rs 75,000 crore, has contributed Rs 3,100 crore to real sports through sponsorships and partnerships with various sports leagues in FY22. This number is projected to reach a cumulative Rs 29,000 crore between FY22 and FY27.
Despite this robust growth of the fantasy sports industry, India was yet to become a true sporting powerhouse, the report noted.
“One of the main challenges ahead for fantasy sports is the need to maintain user trust and confidence in the industry,” said Rohit Bansal, Founder of Super4, an online sports gaming app.
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