For decades, the sports industry operated on a simple model: audiences tuned in, leagues grew over time, and fandom passed from one generation to the next. But the way people consume sport today looks very different from even five years ago. Attention spans are shorter, entertainment choices are endless, and younger audiences are constantly switching between platforms, creators, communities, and content formats.
The next phase of Indian sport will not only be won only by the biggest leagues. It will also be won by formats that can convert attention into participation, participation into community, and community into commercial value.
Traditional sports like Cricket still command scale and will continue to do so. What emerging formats need to keep in mind is that audiences today are looking for experiences that feel faster, more social, culturally relevant, and easier to participate in. Sport is no longer competing only with other sports; it is competing with streaming platforms, gaming, music, creators, and the broader entertainment economy. This is exactly why we are seeing the rise of new-age sports formats such as pickleball, tape ball cricket, celebrity-led leagues, and short-format exhibition properties. These formats do not emerge by accident. They are shaped by the behavioral shifts of a digitally native generation that values accessibility, community, and entertainment as much as competition itself.
India is becoming one of the most interesting markets for this transition. WPP Media’s Sporting Nation 2025 report shows that India’s sports economy crossed the $2 billion mark for the first time, reaching ₹18,864 crore in 2025 and growing 13.4% year-on-year. Cricket still anchors the ecosystem, contributing 89% of total industry revenues, but the real signal is broader: sports in India is becoming more structured, monetisable and multi-format business. As media spends, sponsorships and digital advertising continue to grow, the market is creating room for new-age formats that may not match cricket’s scale, but can deliver sharper communities, stronger participation and more culturally flexible brand integrations.
The formats gaining traction today usually have four things in common: they are easy to understand, easy to play, easy to share, and easy for brands to integrate into. That is why they travel faster than many traditional properties. They are not only sports formats; they are content formats, community formats and sponsorship formats at the same time. Let’s look at Pickleball for example – Its growth also reflects a larger shift in urban India: sport is increasingly becoming a social habit, not just a competitive pursuit. People are not only looking for professional sporting excellence; they are looking for formats that fit into residential communities, clubs, corporate parks, weekend routines and social circles. Another one could be Tape ball – its power lies in the fact that it does not feel manufactured. It already has language, heroes, rivalries, local pride and community memory built into it. For an IP owner or brand, that is extremely valuable because the culture already exists — the opportunity is to organize, package and scale it without killing its authenticity. Then there are formats like all the celebrity-led leagues that tap into something equally powerful: nostalgia and personality-driven fandom. Audiences today are not only following teams; they are following stories, creators, former athletes, and personalities. The rise of celebrity leagues reflects how sport and entertainment are increasingly merging into one ecosystem. Fans are showing up not just for the competition, but for the personalities, content moments, and cultural conversations built around it.
However, celebrity-led formats need to be built carefully. Personality can create initial attention, but repeat value comes only when there is a clear format, rivalry, content engine and reason for fans to return beyond the celebrity names.
What makes these formats particularly successful is that they are designed for both physical and digital engagement simultaneously. They work inside venues, but they are also built for clips, creator collaborations, livestream moments, fan reactions, and community sharing. In many ways, the format itself becomes content. Emerging formats are opening entirely new commercial opportunities across sponsorships, franchise models, merchandise, creator partnerships, and experiential activations. Brands are also finding these ecosystems more flexible and culturally aligned compared to traditional sports sponsorship structures. A few years ago, brand integrations in sports were largely limited to logo visibility and media exposure. Today, brands want participation. They want communities, storytelling opportunities, creator-led engagement, and sustained cultural relevance. New-age formats are naturally enabling this because they are more adaptable, collaborative, and audience-first in their design.
We are also seeing a growing convergence between sports, gaming, and entertainment. Creator-led broadcasts, influencer participation, community tournaments, and hybrid live experiences are changing how audiences interact with sports properties. The next generation of successful sports IPs will likely look very different from legacy models. They will behave more like entertainment ecosystems than standalone sporting events. This is where the attention economy becomes important. Attention today is fragmented and highly competitive. Audiences are constantly choosing where to spend their time, and emerging sports can no longer rely only on legacy fandom to sustain engagement. The formats that win will be the ones that understand participation, personality, and platform relevance.
But not every new format will succeed. The ones that endure will be those that combine entertainment with structure. Novelty may get the first audience, but sustainability comes from repeatable formats, credible competition, strong storytelling, community ownership, brand relevance and year-round content. At its core, this shift reflects something bigger happening globally: sport is no longer just competition. It is identity, entertainment, community, and culture all at once.
And the formats that understand this early will shape the next decade of the sports business.
