Indian Sports Industry – Opportunities Galore!

India isn’t a ‘sleeping sports giant’ anymore. Over the past few years, India has woken up to sports like never before. Therefore, the opportunities in the sector have slowly and surely cropped up. It is only a matter of time before these opportunities scale upto to sizes befitting the nation with 1.3 Bn people and GDP of  ~3 Tn USD.

A comprehensive and careful study of the sports industry in India reveals opportunities of such significant potential that investors, entrepreneurs and brands can afford to ignore it only at their own peril.

Here is how I perceive the opportunity landscape for sports & fitness in India.

• RETAIL/COMMERCE

Sub-segments: Sportswear (Athleisure), Sports goods, Fitness equipment & accessories, Nutrition, Fan Merchandise

eCommerce ensured that products are available to consumers irrespective of the location, thereby solving for the biggest issue of access. While this happened, brick & mortar retail is also reviving with significant investments by the likes of Decathlon, GoSport and leading sports brands. Athleisure has become the fastest growing category with the generic fashion category for almost all retails – eCommerce or otherwise.

All sub-categories put together, Sports retail is USD 6-8 Bn opportunity and the one growing in the range of 15-20% year on year.

• ENGAGEMENT

Sub-segments: Fantasy Sports, Fan Engagement

India has 300 Mn sports fans with smart phones and affordable data connection. These fans are hungry for engagement. These aren’t just cricket fans anymore – they also passionately follow other sports like football (soccer), basketball, badminton, tennis, motorsports, golf, cycling, running & more.

The success of Dream 11 has shown how big the fantasy sports opportunity in India is and could be in future. For perspective, there are ~46 Mn fantasy sports user in the USA (as per thefsga.org). In India, the fantasy sports users have risen from a mere 2 Mn in 2016 to 50 Mn in 2019 and the likes of Dream 11 have just about scratched the surface.

With faster and cheaper internet, streaming is becoming the default mode of sports consumption. Further, proliferation of sports leagues has resulted in several fandom subsets which did not exist a few years ago. Passive viewing of sports is slowly turning in active participation. Several companies like Rooter, Fancode etc have cropped up recently to capitalize on this opportunity.

• CONTENT

Sub-segments: Sports Content, Live Sports Tracking

Indians have always been good at following sports. 180 Mn viewers in India watched the ICC Cricket World Cup Final in 2019 when India wasn’t even playing the game – compare this with a just 15 mn viewers from the UK who watched the same game even when their country was playing the finals! In 2018 alone, a record 800 Mn consumed sports content on TV!

Sports content platforms like Espncricinfo, Cricbuzz, Sportskeeda etc. have seen a massive surge in traffic and engagement over past 4-5 years. These platforms have become sought after avenues for advertisement in India given the level of engagement.

Live sports streaming is already an established big opportunity space. Star India bought rights for the Indian Premier League for a staggering USD 2.5 Bn and its betting big on its streaming app HotStar.

• DISCOVERY

Sub segments: Aggregators of services, venues, events & more

Discovery is an emerging opportunity as Indians have actively started looking for fitness centers, sports venues, services providers, trainers, coaches, nutritionists, dieticians etc. Sports & fitness is the fastest growing category for service aggregator platforms. And recently, several specialist aggregators platforms like Gympick, Fitternity, Playo etc. have emerged with exclusive focus on sports & fitness only.

This is one area where aggregators are expected to open up and expand a significant opportunity space and further spur the growth of service providers.

• SPORTS TECH

Sub segments: Smart Wearables, Smart Gear/Sensors, Analytics & Statistics, Wellness/Fitness Applications or Platforms

Sports Tech is emerging into one big opportunity in India just like it is in other countries like Australia, UK and US. Sample this data – India is the 3rd largest wearable market after US and China and sports wearables – fitness bands & smart watches, contribute to nearly 48% of this segment.

In addition to the devices, the technology platforms/app are finding its footprints in smartphones of Indians. There are apps to tell consumers what to play, where to play, how to play, what to eat & more. The likes of Healthifyme, Stepathlon, GoQi, Runtastic, Strava etc are witnessing ever increasing user growth.

In pure play analytics space, companies like Formcept, Sports Mechanic, Sporting Mindz etc are successfully delivering analytics products/services across several sports, not just in Indian sports but across the world.

• EVENTS & EXPERIENCE

Sub segments: Event Management, Sponsorships, Ticketing, Tourism

A recent survey by travel major Booking.com revealed that 37% of Indians sports fans are willing to pay more for sports travels than a family vacation. 41% of Indian fans are willing to mis work or even loose a job just to travel to attend a major sporting event.

It isn’t surprising therefore, that all travel companies have witness significant rise in Indian travellers to sporting destinations abroad – ICC cricket world cup, Football world cup, Olympics, Marathons, F1 & more.

• SPORTS INFRASTRUCTURE

Sub segments: Stadium, Sports Arena, Gyms

With Khelo India Program, the Indian Govt. is finally pushing the developing of sports infrastructure in India. The quantum of fund is still not enough but this is a refreshing change Govt’s attitude towards sports.

On the other hand, private sports infrastructure has also seen a massive surge. For real estate companies, inhouse sporting infrastructure in a residential complex is one of the top USPs and consumers are also making choices based on this. Top cities in India have also seen mushrooming of sports arenas like Futsal field, Indoor Cricket, Tennis & Badminton courts which are being offered to consumers on pay per use basis.

Companies like Cure.Fit with massing funds at disposal has re-invigorated the gym infrastructure segment in India by completely re-defining the user experience.

• EDUCATION & ADVICE

Sub segments: Sports education, Trainers (Sports coaching, Yoga, Zumba etc.), Advisors (Food, Nutrition, Wellness etc.)

The focus on sports is also clearly visible in Indian education eco-system. Schools are actively promoting sports participation. The sporting leagues have creating significant career opportunities in sports. Sports is not just as a hobby but as a real career option now.  

With such favourable demand side factors, the supply side isn’t looking back either. The eco-system of trainers, coaches, instructors is mushrooming as a major micro entrepreneurship phenomenon. With increase digital penetration, it has because extremely easy for these micro entrepreneurs to reach out to their customers. Together, they are driving a health and wellness revolution in India.

• FOOD

Sub segments: Healthy packaged food, Healthy snacks/meals

The massive young population in India has become fitness conscious and there is a tangible shift in their food choices. Indian are more conscious about what they eat and how it impacts their health. Healthy food isn’t just a fade anymore. Further, thanks to the massive surge in online food delivery space in India, the access and distribution problem is all but solved.

Packaged food segment has also seen several health focused brands like Epigamia, Yogabar, Raw etc. crop up and do really well. Some of these brands have also been successful in raising funds from reputed investors – not just VCs and PEs but also from sports/movie stars.

Each of the above-mentioned opportunities are significant enough independently and when put together makes the overall sports and fitness sector in India a very attractive and big opportunity space in India.

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I would deep dive into each of these areas over a series of blogs. And, I would be happy to connect with fellow entrepreneurs, investors, brands and other constituents of the eco-system to put together one comprehensive view on sports and fitness industry in India – my little contribution towards helping this category get focus and attention it truly deserves.