The Rise of Fantasy Sports in India

If you are a sports enthusiast you would have definitely come across at least one Fantasy Sports platform. And could have questioned the potential of the industry in India.

Here is all you need to know about the rising popularity of Fantasy sports in India.

What is Fantasy sport

Fantasy sports are online prediction games in which you can put together a virtual team of real sports players. And according to their real-life performances you earn points. The better a player performs from your virtual team in real life the higher your fantasy point. You can play with other managers and their teams. And earn points while enjoying a thrilling game.

Fantasy sports in India

Fantasy Sports just like the rest of the world is a growing industry in India. Before fantasy sports in India, the sports consumption was merely restricted to passive entertainment from the comfort of one’s own room. But with the introduction of fantasy sports, fans are kept at the edge of their seats while actively participating and enjoying the game.

In a country like India fans are very invested in their favourite game and most feel-like experts. Addressing this fantasy sport brings fans closer to real time action. Even though cricket has the most subscribers and moreover subscribers love to do cricket betting, other sports like basketball (NBA), football and kabaddi are gaining popularity in recent years.

The Market Overview

Fantasy sports is a platform in which the subscribers create their fantasy team and earn points according to the real-life performance of the players. Because of this attractive concept, fantasy sports is rapidly growing in India. Numerous and multiple operators are emerging with various business offerings and models.

Because of the fast-growing popularity, it is obligatory to have a governing body to shape and monitor Fantasy sports industry. To safeguard consumer interest and create best practices for the fantasy sports in the country, the formerly known Indian Federation of Sports Gaming (IFSG) was renamed as the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports and was formed in 2017.

The Fantasy Sports industry is at a budding state, but with the multiple start-ups which are trying to attract the 800 million sports fans, there is great promise in the flourishing of the industry.

The low-cost data plans and the high usage of phones have made these start-ups convince their investors and take a risk investing in Fantasy Sports platforms. Over the past five years 112 million US dollars have been poured into the fantasy sports platforms by the investors. And the numbers continue to rise.

The success of the Indian stakeholders and the sudden skyrocketing trajectory of the fantasy sports market hasgained the attention of various foreign investors and multiple overseas investors have already invested in various fantasy sports platforms.

Fantasy sports is a new and interesting concept which engages the players and keeps them coming back. Because of this even though the industry is just starting out, there is still huge scope for its rise which is why it is attracting thousands of investors and millions of fans.