Expanded List of Nationally Important Sporting Events Announced

New Sporting Events Designated as National Importance

The Indian government has significantly expanded the roster of sporting events classified as 'events of national importance' under the Sports Broadcasting Signals (Mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharati) Act of 2007. This update aims to include a broader spectrum of both international and domestic competitions within the mandatory signal-sharing framework.

On June 11, a Gazette notification from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting replaced a previous order from May 2022, updating the list of events whose live broadcast signals must be shared with the public broadcaster, Prasar Bharati.

According to the 2007 Act, broadcasters with exclusive media rights for these designated events are obligated to share live signals with Prasar Bharati, thereby enhancing public access through platforms like Doordarshan and All India Radio. The updated notification continues to recognize the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and Asian Games as events of national significance while broadening coverage to include cricket, tennis, hockey, football, badminton, kabaddi, and grassroots competitions.

Cricket is prominently featured in the revised list, encompassing all official ODIs, T20Is, and Test matches played by both the Indian men's and women's teams, as well as ICC Test matches involving India. Additionally, it includes the knockout rounds of the ICC men’s and women’s ODI and T20 World Cups, the ICC Champions Trophy, the ICC World Test Championship, Asia Cup matches from the Super Four stage onward, and India’s matches along with the semi-finals and finals of the Under-19 World Cup.

In tennis, the list now includes all Davis Cup ties involving India, Grand Slam singles finals, and all quarter-final matches and beyond featuring Indian players in singles, doubles, and mixed doubles categories.

Hockey has also seen a significant expansion, now covering World Cup matches involving India, semi-finals and finals of the World Cup, Champions Trophy fixtures, FIH Hockey Pro League matches, Sultan Azlan Shah Cup ties featuring India, and domestic tournaments like the Hockey India Sub Junior National Championship and the Hockey India Academy National Championship. The Men’s Junior World Cup is included when hosted by India.

For football, the list encompasses the opening match, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and final of the FIFA World Cup, all Asia Cup matches involving India, the tournament’s semi-finals and final, and the semi-finals and final of the Santosh Trophy. The Asian Women’s Football Cup and FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup are also included when hosted by India, along with the opening match and knockout stages of the FIFA U-17 World Cup.

Badminton coverage now features the All England Open and the BWF World Championships, including all matches with Indian players as well as the semi-finals and finals. The Kabaddi World Cup, which includes all India matches and the tournament’s semi-finals and finals, has also been added. Furthermore, all competitions and leagues organized under the Khelo India Mission are now recognized.