ACC announce USD 170 million base price for four Asia Cup media rights

The Asian Cricket Council (ACC) has announced a base price of USD 170 million for the media rights to the Asia Cup. This package includes global television, digital, and audio rights for several key tournaments, including the Men's Asia Cup, Women's Asia Cup, Men's Under-19 Asia Cup, Men's Emerging Teams Asia Cup, Women's Under-19 Asia Cup, and Women's Emerging Teams Asia Cup. The auction is set to take place on November 1.

The highlight of the rights package is the Men's Asia Cup, which will cover four editions of the tournament between 2024 and 2031. The next Men's Asia Cup is scheduled to take place in India in 2025 in the T20 format, followed by Bangladesh in 2027 (ODI format), Pakistan in 2029 (T20 format), and Sri Lanka in 2031 (ODI format). Each edition will feature 13 matches, with the India-Pakistan encounters being the most anticipated games. There will be at least two guaranteed matches between the rivals, with a third possible if they meet in the final.

In the most recent Asia Cup, which followed a hybrid model with matches held in both Pakistan and Sri Lanka, India won both games against Pakistan and went on to win the final as well.

The ACC is offering three Women's Asia Cup tournaments in the upcoming rights cycle. The winner of the media rights will be decided through an e-auction, a process praised for its fairness and transparency. Interested parties must submit their technical bids in Dubai on October 30 before participating in the e-auction.

A key question ahead of the auction is how many broadcasters will participate. There is speculation over whether Reliance-backed Viacom18/Jio Cinema and Disney Star will compete separately or if only one of them will bid, given their impending merger. Most regulatory approvals for the merger have already been obtained, adding uncertainty to the bidding process.