Tickets for IPL knockout rounds may face service tax googly

Watching Indian Premier League (IPL) matches in stadiums can cost more from the knockout and semi-final stages, as tickets are likely to come under the service tax net.

The Budget proposal of service tax at 14 per cent will be implemented as soon as the Finance Bill is notified.

Ticket prices for IPL matches differ according to the venues. For instance, in Delhi the price ranges from ₹600 to ₹18,000. Service tax will be levied on admission to certain sporting events if the amount charged exceeds ₹500.

Franchises may bear cost Though those involved with the IPL are hoping tickets will attract service tax only in the last leg, industry sources said that for this season the franchises may absorb the burden. Tickets for the knockout stage are sold directly by the IPL and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Hemant Dua, CEO of Delhi Daredevils, said the franchise will have to see the impact when the service tax is notified.

While several franchises have hiked prices only for the top-end categories or kept them at at last season’s levels, others have slashed prices, especially for matches in non-metro cities.

The franchises are hoping to see higher revenues from tickets this season against last season, when several matches were held in the UAE.

Junaid Shaikh, DGM, Sports & Strategic Development at online ticket-seller BookmyShow, said the response for IPL tickets has been good as all the matches are being played in India.

“In metro cities, nearly 80 per cent of the tickets are being bought online while in Ahmedabad, Visakhapatnam and Chennai, it is 40 per cent; the balance is being bought from offline touch-points,” he said. The company sells tickets for six franchises.

Franchises have increased rates by 7-10 per cent in certain categories. Shaikh said at least in this season franchises are unlikely to increase prices midway due to the service tax notification and may absorb this additional burden.

The criteria In February, the Centre had decided to levy service tax on admission to sporting events other than recognised events, if the amount charged was more than ₹500.

A recognised sporting event is one that is organised by a recognised sports body, where the participating teams represent a district, state, zone or country. IPL teams are franchises and represent a commercial entity, as players do not represent any district, state, zone or country.