LAHORE: The winner of the 2026 T20 Cricket World Cup will be bagging a whopping $3 million or Rs840 million in prize money, up 20 per cent from the $2.45 million or Rs686 million purse offered during the previous edition.
The runners-up this year will pocket $1.6 million or Rs 448 million. The prize pool at the 2026 T20 World Cup rests at $13.5 million or Rs3.78 billion, almost 20 per cent from the last edition when this amount had stood at $11.25 million or Rs3.15 billion. The two teams eliminated from the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2026 will receive a prize of $790,000 or Rs221.2 million each.
Meanwhile, the prize money for teams finishing from 5th to 12th slots this year will be $380,000 or Rs106.4 million each. Teams finishing between 13th and 20th positions will be taking home $250,000 or Rs 70 million each.
According to latest figures, the India vs Pakistan match on February 15 was watched by more than 454 million viewers on Jio Hotstar app and website alone.
The Indian broadcast partners of the International Cricket Council (ICC), reports the “CNN News18”, an Uttar Pradesh-based Indian English language news television channel, co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Brothers Discovery has localized commentary even further by broadcasting each fixture in five languages; English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada across its TV and digital coverage.
Total consumption across JioStar’s digital and linear platforms grew by 59% compared to the 2024 edition, reaching 14.7 billion minutes on the opening day of the tournament, eclipsing all previous viewership records with biggest-ever opening day.
JioStar, owned by Mukesh Ambani, has reported an After-Tax Profit of Indian Rs8.88 billion (equivalent to 27.41 billion) during the last quarter of 2025, helping its net revenues reach Indian Rs80.10 billion (Pak Rs247.25 billion).
Similar trend was recorded by the International Cricket Council’s official YouTube channel which had witnessed a significant viewership surge during the first week of this 55-match contest where 20 cricket team are playing for honour.
The ICC YouTube channel has till date experienced a 53 per cent increase in video views across its digital platforms (including YouTube and Sony Network) compared to the previous edition. ICC’s digital platforms collectively garnered 647 million video views in the opening matches of the 2026 tournament, while this premier cricketing body’s official App saw an 83% spike in users since 2024.
Its website traffic increased by 16%. The highest increases in viewership came from outside traditional cricket nations, with a 442% rise in users from Nepal, a 196% increase from the UAE, and a 49% jump from the USA.
