KOCHI: Kerala’s sports ecosystem is set to witness never-before-seen excitement as big business houses, filmstars and administrators come together to launch football, cricket and basketball leagues. The move is expected to bring in multiple-crores of investment that will go into building new stadiums with modern amenities in the next two to five years, promote sports at the grassroots, and trigger job creation at various levels.
The biggest bet has been made by Kochi-based Meeran group, which is launching the Super League Kerala (SLK) through its sports arm Scoreline Sports. The plan includes huge investments to build new football-friendly stadiums at five locations, including Malappuram, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.
While filmstars Prithviraj Sukumaran and Asif Ali will be co-owners of the Kochi and Kannur franchises of the league, founder of leading IT firm IBS Software has also taken the plunge by acquiring the Calicut franchise.
“You will see most of Kerala’s celebrities associating and aligning with some team or the other,” says Mathew Joseph, the CEO of SLK.
Not to be left behind, the inaugural edition of the Kerala Cricket League – a state-level T20 tournament – will begin next month. It has seen the likes of filmmaker Priyadarshan, Aries Group and EKK Infrastructure, among others, owning franchises. Meeran-Scoreline is also backing a sports startup Starting Five Sports Management (established by five former Kerala basketball players), which will launch a new basketball league in the state.
“We are also trying to get into gymnastics and sepak takraw or kick volleyball. The good thing about kick volleyball is that it will bring excitement among the people,” says Navas Meeran, chairman of Group Meeran which sold off its curry powder business, Eastern Condiments, to Norway-listed Orkla for nearly Rs 1,400 crore in 2020.
Joseph says KSL and the team owners investment this season alone would be Rs 75-80 crore. “This is only going to get bigger and better. Imaging Rs 70 crore being circulated into the local economy when a lot of people travel and watch the matches,” he says.
Rajmohan Pillai of Beta Group, who has studied the sports industry, says it remains to be seen if the investments by the corporate houses and the film bigwigs pay off. “Worldwide, football has the biggest viewership, followed by basketball. In Europe, football is a big market, yet most clubs don’t make money and many clubs are loss-making,” he points out. “But there’s no question, these new sports leagues can breathe life into the local economy,” Pillai adds.
Firoz Meeran, vice-chairman of Group Meeran, says the group sees the investment as “social entrepreneurship”.
“Right now, Kerala doesn’t have a proper local sports ecosystem. The new leagues will see a new economy of sorts, from printing jerseys to entry of physiotherapists and food joints coming alive,” he explains.
Navas, who is also the Kerala Football Association president, adds, “In Kerala, there’s no entertainment for us other than cinema. Though there are e-gaming options, they are speculative and unhealthy. If the League becomes popular, people will come and watch the games at the stadium. And if we have stadiums that are women-friendly with good toilets and food courts, the event will become an affordable entertainer every week for a family.”
As per the plan, Meeran-Scoreline is expected to pump in `350 crore over a 12-year-period into the football league, and another `100 crore into basketball through its partnership with the Kerala Basketball Association.
While the cricket league, run by BCCI-backed Kerala Cricket Association, can expect to create some ripple, thanks to the popularity of IPL, Pillai reckons the market share will still be very marginal. “The Indian sports management business is a minuscule part of the global market and IPL alone corners a substantial share of the domestic market. And Kerala’s size would be minuscule in the Indian market,” he says.
GenZ has various options to watch matches, from European football leagues and other global sports, he points out. “Everything will fall into place only if we have exceptional players, the players who have the talent to attract the crowds,” Pillai avers.
Big bets
Biz groups
Meeran Group: Football, basketball
IBS Software: Football (Calicut)
Aries group: Cricket (Kollam)
EKK Infrastructure: Cricket (Calicut)
Celebrities
Prithviraj Sukumaran: Football (Kochi)
Asif Ali: Football (Kannur)
Priyadarshan: Cricket (T’Puram)
Indian sports industry worth $1.9 bn
A report by GroupM ESP Sporting Nation Report 2024 estimates the Indian sports industry to be worth I15,766 crore ($1.9 billion) while the global sports industry is pegged at $403 billion. Simply put, the Indian market is just 0.47% of the global market.