Picture Courtesy : IPL
YouGov Sport’s Global Buzz 2021 Rankings reveal that the Indian Premier League has been crowned as the brand with the most positive Buzz in India in 2020, with a Buzz score of +54.4 points. Although IPL 2020 was postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event was well received by the sports-deprived public, creating a lot of positive buzz.
YouGov SportsIndex measures the public’s perception of sports brands on a daily basis across a range of metrics. The rankings are based on the Buzz score from YouGov’s SportsIndex, which measures whether respondents have heard something positive or negative about a brand recently.
Cricket continues to rule the charts with the ICC Cricket World Cup following in the second place (with a Buzz score of 46.3), while the third spot is taken by the FIFA World Cup (27).
In a strong year for national sporting leagues, Pro Kabaddi League and the country’s biggest franchise-based football series- Indian Super League, were able to generate positive buzz in 2020, parking themselves in the fourth and fifth position, with a score of 23.1 and 20.1, respectively.
The 2018 Asian Games marked India’s best performance ever with a total win of 69 medals including 15 golds. The remarkable achievements of the country left the people jubilant, making the tournament land a spot in the top ten list- at sixth (with a Buzz score of 16).
Despite being cancelled in 2020, the Wimbeldon Championship managed to create positive noise and is placed at seventh (14.1) in the 2021 rankings followed by the World Wresting Entertainment (13.8), a sports event that has been massively popular in India for the past few decades.
In the ninth spot with a score of 13.8 is the 2018 Commonwealth Games, where India finished third and won 66 medals, surpassing its own record of 64 medals in the previous 2014 Commonwealth games.
Even though India did not accomplish a feat at the 2020 Australian Open, the tournament created a positive buzz among the people, placing the event at the tenth position (12.6) in the 2021 rankings.
Commenting on the research, Joseph Eapen, Senior Vice President at YouGov Sport, said,
“The Covid19 pandemic led to massive disruption within the global sports industry, leaving fans deprived of live sports during the lockdown. Although the year was tough for sports across the globe, appetite for live sports did not perish.
Despite being rescheduled, IPL peaked interest of cricket fans and became the buzziest event of 2020. The past year seemed favorable for several other domestic sporting leagues such as Pro kabaddi League, ISL, etc., placing them in the top ten rankings.
While live sports have gradually resumed over the past months, broadcasters and sports organizers need to be mindful of the needs of the captive sports audience and find innovative ways to generate viewership and engagement.”
