IPL brand valued at $4 billion!

The value of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has doubled to a whopping $4.13 billion in 2010 from $2.01 billion last year.

A huge amount of intellectual property is being created by the complete IPL ecosystem, which sustained despite the economic slowdown, reflecting the exponential value of IPL and the brand potential in a cricket loving country like India and other global cricketing countries, says a study by Brand Finance.

The individual franchisees have hit new high, with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) moving up 4 places to take over the 1st position to be valued at $48.4 million.

According to Unni Krishnan, managing director of Brand Finance India, "In comparison to international benchmarks for sporting business' such as EPL which is valued at $12 billion, the IPL juggernaut, in a short span of 3 years, is valued at $4 billion and has the potential to grow further".

However, the revenues are likely to drop in the next one or two years. "One will see revenue from the IPL central pool stagnate or decline as more teams are launched and competition increases from all sides. Most of the franchisees will meet an inflection point and need to work towards commercial sustainability with great discipline and focus," says Unni Krishnan.

Click NEXT to check out the brand value of the IPL teams. . .

1. Chennai Super Kings

The Chennai Super Kings tops the charts with a brand value at $48.4 million. Last year, Chennai Super Kings was ranked at number four with a value of $39.4 million. The Chennai Super Kings, owned by franchise India Cements, is led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

2. Kolkata Knight Riders

Kolkata Knight Riders, which was number one last year, has been pushed to second position with a value of $46 million, up from $42.1 million a year ago. The team led by Sourav Ganguly, is owned by Shah Rukh Khan, Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta.

3. Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals is in the third position with a value of $45.2 million, up from $39.5 million last year. The Rajasthan Royals franchise is owned by Emerging Media Group.

Shane Warne is the captain of the team.

4. Royal Challengers Bangalore

The Vijay Mallya-owned Royal Challengers has hit a high of $41.9 million from $37.4 million last year. The team led is by Anil Kumble.

5. Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians, owned by Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, has fallen to $40.8 million from $41.6 million in 2009. The team led by Sachin Tendulkar was ranked second last year in terms of brand value.

6. Delhi Daredevils

The Delhi Daredevils has hit $40.5 million from $39.2 million in 2009. The team owned by GMR Holdings is led by Gautam Gambhir.

7. Kings XI Punjab

Kings XI Punjab has maintained its 7th rank with a value of $36.1 million. Last year, it stood at $36.3 million. Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia along with with Karan Paul and Mohit Burman own the team.

Kumar Sangakkara is the captain of the team.

8. Hyderabad Deccan Chargers

Deccan Chargers owned by media group, Deccan Chronicle, is at the 8th position with a value of $34.4 million. It was valued at $34.8 million in 2009.

Adam Gilchrist leads the team.