International Cricket

ICC ITT Rights Pakistan vs India CT 2027 Broadcast Decoded

Anjali Iyer 19 May 2026 Updated 19 May 2026 ~6 min read ~1,042 words

ICC headquarters in Dubai with broadcast trucks parked outside

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The ICC will publish its Invitation to Tender (ITT) for the 2027-31 media rights cycle on June 6, 2026. The Champions Trophy 2027, hosted by South Africa, is the marquee property in the early cycle. The India-Pakistan group-stage match, if it lands in the draw (and the geopolitical clauses in the ITT make it likely), is by some distance the most commercially valuable cricket match the ICC sells. Here is what bidders are reading in the draft tender notes circulated to member boards on May 11.

What the draft ITT includes

The 2027-31 ITT covers all ICC men's and women's events: two T20 World Cups, two ODI World Cups, two Champions Trophies, the U19 World Cup, the women's World Cup, and ICC qualifying events. The cycle's headline matches include CT 2027 (South Africa, February-March), T20 WC 2028 (Australia, October-November), Women's WC 2029 (India, January-February), and ODI WC 2031 (Pakistan + Sri Lanka, October-November).

The draft tender splits rights into three baskets: global broadcast, digital-only, and territory-specific. The global broadcast basket has a published floor price of USD 2.4 billion across the four years, against the previous cycle's USD 1.6 billion. The increase is driven by the India-Pakistan match's expected audience scale and the women's WC India 2029 premium.

The geopolitical clauses

The geopolitical clauses in the draft ITT are a new addition. They address what happens if a CT 2027 India-Pakistan group-stage match is impacted by bilateral diplomatic tensions. Three scenarios are addressed. First, match continues at South African venue as scheduled. Second, match moves to a neutral non-Indian, non-Pakistani venue at short notice. Third, match is cancelled and a reserve-day replacement match (against a different opponent) is played.

The clauses set out who bears commercial risk. In scenario one, the broadcaster pays the full match fee. In scenario two, the broadcaster pays 95% of the match fee. In scenario three, the broadcaster pays 60% and the ICC's insurance underwrites 30%. The 10% that is uncovered is the negotiating margin that bidders are studying carefully.

The four likely bidders

Four entities are expected to bid for the global broadcast basket. The first is Disney Star, the current rights-holder, which lost some of its Indian-market dominance after the 2024 Indian streaming consolidation. The second is the Reliance Industries-owned Viacom 18 / JioCinema, now the dominant Indian streaming cricket platform. The third is a Sony Pictures Network India / Disney Star joint-bid consortium that may emerge if the two companies coordinate on India rights. The fourth is a private-equity-backed global consortium with US, UK, and Middle Eastern capital.

The bid that wins will likely combine India rights with global rights. The pure-global bid faces a structural disadvantage because the India market is roughly 75% of the cycle's revenue. Bidders without India distribution will need to either sub-license or partner with an Indian holder.

What the India-Pakistan match is worth alone

Industry estimates put the India-Pakistan single-match broadcast value at USD 78 million to USD 92 million in advertising and subscription value. The 2023 ODI World Cup match between the two teams drew an estimated 173 million viewers on the Disney Star+JioCinema combined feed. The 2024 T20 World Cup match in New York drew 152 million. The CT 2027 group-stage match, if it lands, is expected to draw between 165 and 195 million viewers, depending on the South African venue and time slot.

The 78-92 million range is the single-match number. The cumulative value of the India-Pakistan property across the cycle (CT 2027 plus any reciprocal matches in T20 WC 2028 and ODI WC 2031) is closer to USD 280 million. That cumulative value alone is more than the entire cycle's value to many smaller member boards.

The PCB's position on neutral venues

The PCB's position on neutral venues for India matches is well-established: it is the host of the ODI WC 2031 jointly with Sri Lanka, and has consistently said India matches in that World Cup will be played in Sri Lanka. The CT 2027 host is South Africa, so the neutral-venue question does not directly apply. But the ITT's geopolitical clauses are written with that PCB position in mind.

A board insider on the PCB side said the PCB is broadly supportive of the ITT clauses as drafted. The PCB's primary concern is that the ITT clauses do not create commercial incentives that encourage broadcasters to lobby for India-Pakistan matches to be scheduled in particular ways. The clauses, as drafted, are neutral on this. Bidders read them the same way.

What it means

The June 6 ITT launch starts a 90-day bid window. The winning bid will be announced in October or November. The India-Pakistan property will be priced into the bid in a way that makes the geopolitical clauses commercially central. Watch for which bidder lands the global basket and how India distribution is bundled. The CT 2027 in South Africa is, financially, the highest-stakes ICC event since the 2023 ODI WC. The match that decides its value has not yet been drawn.