India’s betting demand shifts beyond IPL in 2026: Report
India’s iGaming sector has seen major disruption in 2026, with exclusive statistics from Blask, a real-time analytics platform for the iGaming industry, revealing that the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 produced more betting demand than the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 for only the second time in a decade.
The international event, which took place between February and March 2026, generated the highest level of cricket betting demand in the country for the year, surpassing April 2026, which normally records the highest betting volume related to IPL games. The shift points to a new trend in Indian cricket betting behaviour.
The IPL opened on 28 March 2026, recording the highest level of betting volume in a decade according to Blask data, but declined steadily throughout the tournament, registering less than 40 per cent of the opening day’s level by the final on 31 May 2026. This is the first time in history that betting on the IPL has fallen consistently from beginning to end.
Decade of dominance
The IPL dominated the Indian iGaming scene for almost a decade. According to Blask’s analysis for the years 2016 to 2025, IPL months topped the charts in eight out of 10 years. There was nothing else that could even compare to the IPL’s gravitational pull-on players. There was consistency in this trend. Typically, betting demand would build gradually after the league’s opening matches, reaching its peak in the latter stages of the tournament.
The first break from the trend occurred in December 2019, when betting demand exceeded the levels seen during the IPL season earlier that year. The surge corresponded with India’s home series against the West Indies, as well as the IPL auction. However, analysts discovered something deeper: an increasing baseline of iGaming activity in the Indian market that lasted throughout January and February 2020.
Three years later, in 2022, a clearer precedent was established. The Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia, in which India competed as a leading contender, generated peak demand that exceeded that of the previous IPL season. For Indian cricket fans, global stakes proved more appealing than domestic league cricket, although the IPL would regain dominance in 2023, 2024, and 2025.
(Source: Blask)
Global cricket overtakes domestic stage
The T20 World Cup ran from 7 February to 8 March 2026, with India serving as co-host. February emerged as the strongest month of the year for iGaming demand, while April, traditionally one of the IPL’s strongest months for betting activity, recorded lower demand than the month dominated by international cricket.
Cricket fans couldn’t wait to get back into the action after the T20 World Cup concluded. With a three-week layoff and no other matches to keep them interested, bettors poured their energy into the IPL’s opening day on 28 March 2026 setting a new record. The pent-up excitement from the World Cup, along with the lack of other cricket action in the interim, meant that all of the betting energy was focused on the IPL’s first match.
The order in which events occurred had a significant impact on how betting played out. In 2025, the picture was very different from what we observed in 2026. At the start of IPL, the Champions Trophy and Women’s Premier League would have been going on for six weeks and excitement had had enough time to grow and develop rather than come up suddenly. Punters and fans stayed interested throughout the period; the market had expanded brilliantly, and enthusiasm never flagged. The momentum steadily increased throughout April until it peaked.
However, 2026 revealed a different story. The T20 World Cup ended on March 8, leaving an awkward three-week hiatus until the IPL began. With no major cricket competition to keep people interested during that period, betting activity dwindled. When the IPL eventually started, fans had already lost interest. When the IPL finally began, fans had already lost interest. Fast forward to the final on 31 May, and betting demand has decreased to less than 40 per cent of its peak on the opening day. It was an unexpected drop throughout the tournament, which the industry had not witnessed before.
(Source: Blask)
Regulation reshapes the betting landscape
While the tournament calendar played a significant role in shaping betting demand in 2026, broader regulatory changes also influenced the market environment. The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Act (PROGA), signed into law in August 2025, reshaped India’s online gaming sector, changing how operators could engage with consumers and market their products.
The new rules and restrictions in India regarding online gambling are quite tough. Poker, rummy, and other fantasy sports were directly prohibited by law, whereas esports and social gaming were made legal. The authority’s mission was straightforward: monitor that operators followed the regulations, respond to player complaints, and apply penalties as necessary.
Yet despite all these restrictions, offshore betting sites weren’t about to give up on Indian customers. According to data from the Advertising Standards Council of India, more than 72 per cent of advertising violations were coming from overseas operators. Things actually got worse after the new regulations arrived, with monthly violations climbing higher. Most of the rule-breaking happened online, particularly through influencers promoting these sites.
The increase in overseas advertising was not coincidental. It corresponded wonderfully with big cricket events, particularly the T20 World Cup and the early stages of the IPL. These competitions had gamblers eager to place bets, and offshore operators were more than willing to fill the void. It demonstrated how keen these overseas betting corporations were to remain in the Indian market, no matter what the government threw at them.
The shifting landscape
India’s online gaming sector is growing despite being mainly reliant on the IPL. However, betting on the IPL remains extremely popular. International cricket matches, particularly the impending ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in 2026, are also gaining popularity.
According to analyst Blask, part of the reason IPL betting cooled off was that awkward three-week gap between the World Cup finishing and the IPL kicking off. With no other big cricket tournament to keep punters engaged during that stretch, people simply lost interest. By the time the IPL got going again, that initial momentum had already fizzled out, and it never quite recovered through the later stages.
This shift could spell trouble for the folks running the show. Gaming operators, broadcasters, and tournament organisers have long banked on the IPL to drive engagement and keep people coming back. For years, the IPL has basically run the show in India’s betting market. But what we’re seeing in 2026 suggests the picture is changing. Rather than everything revolving around one tournament, betting demand is now getting spread across different domestic and international cricket events throughout the year.
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