IPL 2026 final draws historic audience as JioHotstar streaming hits all-time high

JioHotstar, India’s leading media and entertainment company, has set a new benchmark with record-breaking streams during the recent Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season, as the 19th edition became the most-watched season in the league's history.

Fans witnessed Punjab’s record-breaking chase, 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s heroics and Royal Challengers Bengaluru's successful title defence. This edition of the IPL broke multiple on-field records while also creating new records in terms of digital streams. IPL 2026 reach surpassed 1.2 billion, a 7% year-on-year increase.

The TATA IPL 2026 final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the Gujarat Titans garnered double the viewership of any previous TATA IPL event, reaching 400 million views across screens. With JioHotstar connected TVs, viewership increased by 22%, while the availability of commentary in regional languages also increased watch-time share on the official digital platform.

“TATA IPL 2026 was a season where we set out on our journey of what a truly integrated sports platform should look like,” said Ishan Chatterjee, CEO, JioStar, Sports. He further added that the season-ending data is a testament to the efforts we made across platforms, with CTV’s communal experience and regional-language presentation becoming unprecedented growth drivers.

Sportscape believes cricket is already popular in India, and the Indian Premier League provides a platform for young talent to bloom. At the same time, with JioHotstar's regional-language commentary, IPL is increasingly consumed at the local level.