Now Reading: Premier League fans in India spend big, study finds
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Premier League fans in India spend big, study finds
Premier League fans in India are affluent and engaged, according to a JioStar-Nielsen study titled 'The Beautiful Game's Indian Decade'. The report says 70% of fans pay monthly credit card bills above…
The Story in Brief
Premier League fans in India are affluent and engaged, according to a JioStar-Nielsen study titled 'The Beautiful Game's Indian Decade'. The report says 70% of fans pay monthly credit card bills above Rs 40,000, 67% have CIBIL scores of 751 or higher, and 87% hold paid OTT or sports subscriptions. The league now has 144.5 million followers in India, with total watch-time hitting 9.04 billion minutes on the JioStar network during the 2025/26 season. Viewership grew 2.4 times in five years, with non-metro towns contributing over half of mobile and web viewing.
Late-night viewing accounts for 27% of total watch-time, between midnight and 3 am. Interest surged 58% after the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Regional markets including Rajasthan, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh now account for 25% of viewership, up from 12% five years ago, the study notes.
The Indian Opinion
A JioStar-sponsored study makes much of Premier League fans' credit scores and Rs 40,000 monthly bills. Of course the broadcaster wants to sell premium ad slots. But the real story is viewership growth: 144.5 million followers, 9 billion minutes watched, and non-metro audiences now 25% of the total. The question this report dodges is whether this affluence is representative of all Indian football fans or just an early-adopter elite. The test will come when JioStar next raises subscription prices.
Sources (2): economictimes.indiatimes.com, hindustantimes.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources.
