Mumbai, April 1 -- India's sports economy expanded 6% in 2024 to reach Rs.16,633 crore, according to GroupM ESP's Sporting Nation: Building a Legacy XII report. Though marginally short of the $2 billion milestone, the market has grown nearly seven times since 2008-the year the Indian Premier League (IPL) was launched.

"It would have been easy to round it up and call it $2 billion," said Vinit Karnik, managing director - content, entertainment and sports, GroupM South Asia. "But 1.98 billion is the honest number. That reflects the integrity with which we approach this study."

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