2 days ago
Kabaddi goes global: A new league draws up an international playbook with Olympic goals—but can it last?
Mumbai: Kabaddi's global leap is getting a new push, and this time it's not from a broadcaster or a federation but from an entrepreneur betting on scale, structure, and sports entertainment.
Sambhav Jain, founder of SJ Uplift Kabaddi Pvt. Ltd, is preparing to launch the World Super Kabaddi League (WSKL) in February-March in Dubai. The franchise-based league is backed by the International Kabaddi Federation and more than 20 national federations, and has ambitions of pushing kabaddi towards Olympic recognition.
'Getting kabaddi into the Olympics requires at least 40 to 50 active participating nations. We are starting with 30 countries already engaged and building from there," Jain told Mint.
The league has secured commercial rights from the South Asian Kabaddi Federation and plans to structure WSKL not as a seasonal tournament but as a year-round league with academies, international talent scouting, and regional fan engagement.
This isn't the first time kabaddi has been dressed in modern formats and thrust on a bigger stage. But the question remains: Can a sport rooted in rural India sustain global attention beyond an opening-week buzz?
WSKL believes its differentiator is its player composition and location strategy. Unlike the Pro Kabaddi League, where 90% of the roster is Indian, WSKL is flipping the ratio, with 60-70% foreign players and 30-40% Indian athletes in its first season. Over the next 2-3 years, Jain plans to lower Indian representation in WSKL to about 20% to make room for global talent.
The league will operate with eight franchises and a total player purse of ₹48 crore, fully funded by the franchise owners. Negotiations are underway with owners from the US, Canada, and South Korea.
'We are targeting sports investors who understand risk, return and fan-building, not just short-term exposure," Jain said.
Before going global, Jain tested the waters with the Uttar Pradesh Kabaddi League—a regional, franchise-based league launched by his company 1X Sportz in partnership with the UP Kabaddi Association. The inaugural season last year featured eight teams and combined grassroots scouting with a professional auction format.
The Uttar Pradesh Kabaddi League drew encouraging early traction, including broadcast deals and brand partnerships, which Jain calls the 'proof of concept" for his bigger ambitions. 'UPKL gave us the operational playbook and showed there's appetite for kabaddi as structured IP (intellectual property)," he said.
WSKL's real test
WSKL franchisees will be offered a central revenue share via media rights, sponsorships, and merchandise, with a projected return on investments in 2-3 seasons.
Dubai was chosen as the host city because of its strategic visibility and access to diaspora audiences, Jain said, adding that talks are ongoing with broadcasters in India and overseas.
A non-exclusive, multi-region syndication strategy is on the cards, he said. Confirmed participating nations include Iran, South Korea, Bangladesh, Thailand, Japan, and the US.
Jain is financing the venture himself and has no immediate plans to dilute equity or raise funds. 'We have seen what happens when leagues get bloated too early. We are staying lean, focused, and structured for sustainability," he said.
Still, the sports entertainment market is littered with cautionary tales.
From the Pro Volleyball League's legal tussles to the Indian Super League's uneven football franchise economics and table tennis struggling for consistent traction, non-cricket leagues in India have had mixed fates.
Jain believes WSKL is learning from those failures. 'We are not copying the IPL (the popular Indian Premier League 20-over-a-side cricket format)," he said. 'We are adapting its best practices but keeping kabaddi's cultural and commercial reality in mind. You can't build a global league with just flash—you need foundation."
Mumbai-based pharmaceutical company ACG Group, too, plans to avoid the IPL format for its recently announced professional basketball league. GMR Sports—which owns the UP Yoddhas team in the Pro Kabaddi League, the Telugu Yoddhas team in Ultimate Kho Kho, and a 50% stake in the Delhi Capitals IPL team—is preparing to launch the Rugby Premier League.
The World Super Kabaddi League hopes to build credibility through institutional alignment. 'We are officially sanctioned by IKF and have 20 federations onboard, which gives us legitimacy. But now it's about execution," he added.
For all its ambition, WSKL's real test will be fan retention, franchise patience, and its ability to turn kabaddi into a 12-month commercial asset. The format may be ready, but the world and the market will need convincing.
