When India lifted the 2025 ICC Women’s Cricket World Cup trophy in Mumbai, the significance stretched far beyond the boundary ropes.
The victory did not merely end a long wait for global glory it rewired the economics of the sport. Women’s cricket in India, long admired for its grit and heart, suddenly became one of the country’s hottest and most valuable sporting properties. The win ignited something powerful. A sport once treated as a symbolic passion is now a serious commercial force, backed by numbers, brands, investors, and a booming audience that has embraced India’s female cricketers as national icons.
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Before the World Cup, women’s cricket had momentum but still carried the “emerging sport” tag. The WPL was promising, viewership was growing, and the BCCI had begun to invest more meaningfully. Yet doubts about long-term commercial sustainability lingered.
Then came Mumbai 2025. A packed stadium. A title win against South Africa. A nation celebrating its women with the same intensity usually reserved for the men’s team. The immediate impact was visible: India received a record ₹37.3 crore in prize money, part of a dramatic global push toward gender parity. For India, it served as validation the investment had paid off, and the market responded instantly.
Within days, brands, broadcasters, franchises, and advertisers recalibrated their valuations. Women’s cricket was no longer a developing property. It was a blue-chip asset.
A New Era of Player Salaries
The biggest shift was felt by the players themselves.
Star cricketers like Smriti Mandhana and Harmanpreet Kaur saw their base fees rise from around ₹1 crore to ₹1.5–2 crore, while younger stars such as Shafali Verma, Jemimah Rodrigues, Richa Ghosh, and Deepti Sharma entered the ₹1.2–1.5 crore bracket a level unheard of in women’s cricket just a few years ago. Even mid-tier and emerging players witnessed significant jumps. Domestic performers who previously earned ₹10–15 lakh now command ₹25–30 lakh, thanks to rising viewership and a booming fan base.
This new pay structure reflects a deeper truth: the market now values women’s cricket not as goodwill, but as a premium entertainment product backed by demand.
WPL 2026: The Most Heated Auction in History
The WPL, already a landmark league, is now preparing for a blockbuster mega auction in November 2026. With salaries rising across the board and star players expected to command unprecedented bids, franchises have had to rethink their strategies. Teams like Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals chose stability, retaining their full core of five players but sacrificing auction flexibility. Others, such as UP Warriorz and Gujarat Giants, have taken risks by releasing established stars in pursuit of a rebuild.
The biggest shock came when UP Warriorz released Deepti Sharma, the World Cup’s Player of the Tournament. At first glance, it looked surprising. But in reality, it was a calculated move Deepti’s market value is expected to exceed the ₹3.5 crore retention cap, pushing her potential auction price into the ₹5–6 crore range. With the largest purse and multiple RTM cards, UPW is positioned to buy her back at that higher value.
This is what the post-World Cup market looks like: aggressive, data-driven, and ready to push financial boundaries.
Sponsorship Skyrockets as Brands Chase New Heroes
If salaries have climbed sharply, brand endorsements have surged even more.
In the months following the World Cup:
- The number of Indian women cricketers with major brand deals doubled.
- Average endorsement fees for top players jumped from ₹40–60 lakh to ₹80 lakh–₹1.2 crore.
- Total sponsorship inflow crossed ₹60 crore, a historic high.
What changed? Audience behaviour.
The 2025 World Cup drew 190 million television viewers and a staggering 7 billion minutes of digital watch time. Even more impressive: over half the audience was male, proving that women’s cricket has mass-market appeal not a restricted, gender-specific niche.
This shift has opened the door to premium categories such as autos, BFSI, fintech, and FMCG brands that once reserved their biggest budgets solely for the men’s game. The Unmistakable Rise of Individual Superstars
The market has responded especially strongly to young Indian players who lit up the World Cup.
- Jemimah Rodrigues saw her endorsement value rise from ₹60 lakh to over ₹1.5 crore.
- Shafali Verma jumped from ₹40 lakh to more than ₹1 crore.
- Other rising stars are now entering the ₹1 crore band for the first time.
These multipliers 2.5x in many cases are the clearest indication that women’s cricket has built enduring heroes, not momentary sensations. Brands are investing in long-term ambassadors, not just seasonal campaigns. At this rate, India’s top women cricketers are expected to reach the ₹3–4 crore endorsement bracket within the next two years, bringing them close to the earning profiles of several top male cricketers.
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The 2025 World Cup win gave India its first global title in women’s cricket, but the trophy is just the beginning. The victory has altered valuations, redefined player salaries, expanded sponsorship horizons, and triggered a ripple effect across the entire sports economy. Most importantly, it has created a sustainable financial ecosystem capable of supporting talent across levels something women’s cricket has long needed.
For the young girls who filled the stands in Mumbai, it was a moment of inspiration. For the players, it was validation. For the BCCI, it was a return on investment.
For brands, it was a signal.
And for Indian sport, it was history rewriting itself in real time. Women’s cricket is no longer the future.
It is the present and it is booming.
