It’s no news that cricket is the most popular sport in India by far. According to recent estimates, the sport has an audience base of over 610 million fans or roughly 90% of the global fan base. So, every time there’s a high-stakes IPL or world cricket match, the country stops to watch it. More than passion, such numbers mean business opportunities for online sports betting platforms, providing countless markets whenever the ball starts flying.
Indeed, the IPL alone generates billions of rupees in revenue yearly, much more than football or any other sport in the country. Here’s how cricket satta has become a major force in online sports betting and what lies ahead.
The Legal Landscape
According to existing laws in India, each state has the right to regulate its own online gambling and betting sites like Sportsbet.io, though only a few states have explicitly done so. Sikkim was the first to legalise it in 2008, followed by Nagaland in 2009.
In most states, it falls into a grey area of outdated laws that neither prohibit nor legalise it; only Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, and Tamil Nadu have clearly prohibited it. However, the federal government has been working on a new, nationwide online gambling and betting law.
It’s not official yet, as the information comes from anonymous sources (supposedly government officials) quoted by local media.
Apparently, a new bill is being developed at the Ministry of Home Affairs, which could be based on the self-regulatory mechanism for skill-based games implemented by the Ministry of Electronics and Technology in 2023. Meanwhile, the online sports betting industry thrives in the country.
Audience Champions
Over 140 million Indians bet online regularly, which can skyrocket to 370 million during high-stakes events in the IPL or international events like the ICC Cricket World Cup. The 2025 ICC Champions Trophy, which occurred last March, attracted 122 million viewers at peak times, not to mention 61 million viewers following the action via digital channels, an absolute record for this competition.
The last match between the Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings for the Indian Premier League attracted 163 million live viewers. Indeed, the 2025 IPL is a sheer success in terms of audience numbers. So far, it has been watched by over 1.37 billion fans, registering 3.4 million viewers during high-stakes events, more than any other season.
Cricket Around the Clock
While real-life events attract millions of bettors, many can’t wait for the next match. In fact, they don’t need to: fantasy cricket enjoys wide popularity in the country, allowing users to create fictitious teams with real-life athletes, earning points according to their performance in previous events.
Unlike gambling, fantasy cricket is considered a game of skill, so it’s legal in most states. The skill factor derives from the fact that the choice of athletes is decisive for the players’ success. It involves knowledge of updated statistics and strategic thinking to create a winning squad in the virtual world. Since the results are based on real-life events, fantasy cricket also boosts the viewership of live matches.
Fantasy sports aren’t new, but the adaptation to the IPL reality has made it irresistible to millions of fans across the country. Besides, smartphone ownership and mobile internet connectivity are widespread in the country, with over 500 million users, which means a vast potential market for fantasy cricket platforms.
Biggest Events in 2025
Luckily for fans, the cricket calendar is always busy. So far, major events included the T20 match between India and England in Mumbai in February, resulting in a crushing defeat for the founding fathers of the sport, who won only one out of five matches. Later in the same month, there was the ICC Champions Trophy, from which Team India also came out on top.
Indeed, it’s easy to understand why Indian fans get so engaged in major cricket events and flock to the best sports betting sites to have their say. Here are other unmissable events in 2025.
Indian Premier League Final
Originally scheduled for May 30, the 2025 IPL Final will take place on June 3 at the Narendra Modi Stadium due to the ongoing tension between India and Pakistan at the border. Final contenders are yet to be confirmed, but there’s already a lot of expectation about who’ll be the champions of the most-watched IPL season ever.
ICC World Test Championship Final
Sadly for Indian fans, the national squad won’t be in the ICC World Test Championship Final, which will set Australia against South Africa on June 11. Still, it’s a major event for those who love watching the sport at its finest. In India, the event will rely on live broadcasting from Jiostar, Star Sports, and other digital channels.
Test Match: England vs India
When Team England visited India earlier this year for a series of T20 matches, things ended badly for the English. Now, it’s time for India to pay back the visit by playing Test matches, which will be held between July 31 and August 4 at the Kia Oval in London. With Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma retiring from Test cricket, names like Shubman Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal are expected to carry on their legacy. It’s yet unclear whether KL Raul will be part of the opening team, but he’s a strong contender for the role.
The Next Chapters
Such a passion for cricket fuels a vast market comprising about 300 online sports betting platforms and over 180 million active users, according to data from 2023. The same data suggests that 85% of online sports betting revenue comes from cricket events in the country, while football accounts for only about 6%.
Indeed, the sports betting industry is too big to be ignored by lawmakers. This industry is expected to close in 2025 with a revenue above USD 2.1 billion and a robust CAGR of 5.23% until 2029. As a result, some states have already passed friendlier laws towards online sports betting, and a nationwide regulation is expected to come up soon, should the rumours be confirmed.
Following the global trend, mobile apps are among the factors behind the success of this industry. Mobile apps make online sports betting easily accessible to anyone with an internet connection, anywhere, at any time. Smartphones and mobile internet are becoming more affordable in the country, making mobile apps a very accessible way of betting.
New cricket betting apps continue to emerge, and many more will likely come in the wake of more modern laws. Likewise, cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and virtual reality, which now spearhead this industry, are expected to become commonplace soon.
