Which is the second-best cricket league after IPL

From the Big Bash League to the PSL and CPL, discover which cricket league ranks as the second-best after the IPL in global T20 cricket.

Since the inauguration of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008, the franchise T20 tournament’s success has gone through the roof. That marked a historic shift in the sports landscape with unmatched craze and entertainment for the game. The thrilling format was designed to catch the global audience. 

Over the years, other countries have also started to launch their own franchise tournament. Hardly any of these touched the success of the IPL, regarding the valuation and viewership scale. But a few of those have come to a position to be compared with the IPL, which easily stands at the top of the table. 

IPL’s growing business and brand value shade several leagues 
Thanks to top-notch games on most evenings of the two and a half months during the IPL, the brand value has grown. During its inauguration, it had a brand value of $1.6 billion. Now, 17 years later, the number has gone up to $4 billion. It also had a 13.8% rise from the last season.  

The next best in the list is The Hundred, which has the brand value of $1.2 billion. The rise came only after the franchises decided to sell a huge chunk of their stakes to the IPL owners. The Caribbean Premier League (CPL) has the lowest brand value of $4.6 million, followed by the Pakistan Super League (PSL) with $5.7 million in 2025.  

During the IPL 2025, the prize money of the winning team was INR 20 crore. Moreover, Rishabh Pant earned INR 27 crore to become the most costly player in the auction history for the Lucknow Super Giants. His auction price is nearly double that of SA20’s winning prize money of INR 15.4 crore.  

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Comparison of Prize Money in Different T20 leagues as of 2025

IPL’s growth keeps getting better. In that case, the PSL has played a significant role with a rise of 11.4% in the net worth growth. However, the other leagues stay at the same position. 

SA20’s brand value has reached $12.5 million in just three seasons due to its partnership with the IPL franchises. All teams are under the ownership of the IPL owners at present. 

Brand and Business values and viewership of IPL, PSL. SA20, The Hundred, CPL, ILT20, and BBL

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Viewership difference between IPL and other franchise leagues 
Apart from a few overlaps, the IPL saw a TV reach of 546 million along with 620 million digital views last year. There is no data on viewership for the PSL. However, the live pictures of the grounds during the games at Lahore or Multan don’t provide positive signs. Most times, the seat arrangements remain empty with not much excitement. 

The viewership of the other T20 leagues is not inspirational either. The BBL had an average view of 742k last year, which reached 770k in the recent season. One of the biggest issues behind that is the clash of the national games. Most of the spectators put their money on the home Test summer and can’t get hold of the franchise league. 

It’s going to be the same case this year. The 2025/26 season of the league will begin on December 14. However, the Ashe 2025/26 will go on at the same time till January 08, the scheduled last day of the series. By the time the five-match Test series finishes, the BBL will reach its business end. 

This is why the ECB has pulled the start of their Test summer. In the past, the traditional Oval Test match used to take place in September. However, this has changed. They have found a window to host The Hundred during the three-and-a-half-week period. 

So, the bottom line is that it’s hard to pinpoint a league as the second-best. A few have developed their brand values, while a few have worked on increasing their viewership. SA20 has done well in the last couple of seasons. ILT20 and others are catching up, but they don’t have great exposure of the players to get globally accepted. 

In the near future, it’s hard to cross the value and craze of the IPL. That’s the reason why it’s a marquee event in the calendar year. And looking at the present data, it seems like SA20 could possibly be the second-best league. 

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