GEPL Season 3 opens registrations with Rs 3.1 crore prize pool

MUMBAI: Cricket is no longer just played on pitches, sometimes, the biggest sixes come with a thumb swipe. India’s booming esports economy is gearing up for another powerplay as JetSynthesys officially opens registrations for Season 3 of the Global e-Cricket Premier League (GEPL), the world’s only franchise-based e-cricket league. Powered by Real Cricket, the mobile cricket simulation game that has crossed 400 million lifetime downloads globally, GEPL Season 3 is positioning itself as bigger, louder and significantly more mainstream than ever before.

And the numbers suggest it may have the momentum to pull it off.

This year’s tournament will feature a prize pool of ₹3.1 crore, with the grand finale scheduled to take place at the Shree Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Mahalunge-Balewadi, Pune, on 9 August. The league will once again be broadcast across Star Sports and JioHotstar, continuing its push to place esports firmly inside India’s mainstream sports conversation.

Registrations for aspiring players opened on 26 May through the league’s official platform, with organisers expecting another major jump in participation after Season 2’s explosive growth.

Last season, GEPL recorded over 910,000 player registrations, a staggering leap from the 200,000 registrations seen during its debut edition. The tournament also generated more than 174 million broadcast impressions during the IPL window, marking one of the first major moments where e-cricket successfully entered India’s national sports broadcasting ecosystem.

What makes GEPL particularly unique is how aggressively it has embraced the franchise sports model typically associated with traditional cricket leagues.

The tournament has attracted a roster of high-profile franchise owners spanning business founders, investors and public personalities. Returning team owners this season include Peyush Bansal’s Delhi Sharks, Nikhil Kamath, Ankit Nagori and Prashanth Prakash-backed Bengaluru Badgers, Chennai Falcons owned by Gopal Srinivasan, Madhusudanan R and Arjun Santhanakrishnan, Sara Tendulkar-backed Mumbai Grizzlies, Suniel Shetty’s Pune Stallions and Amit Mehta-owned Hyderabad Rhinos.

The idea, according to JetSynthesys chairman Rajan Navani, is to build something far larger than just another gaming tournament.

“GEPL has consistently pushed the boundaries of what esports can be in India. Season 3 is not just another chapter, it is the moment we take e-cricket from a passionate community pursuit to a national digital institution,” Navani said.

“With the scale of our reach, the depth of franchise investment and the growing aspirations of millions of esports athletes, we are building something truly generational,” he added.

The league’s rapid rise also reflects a much larger shift underway in India’s digital sports ecosystem. Competitive gaming is increasingly evolving from a niche youth subculture into a serious entertainment and career economy, fuelled by streaming, mobile gaming access and creator-led fan communities.

GEPL executives say the platform is now becoming as much about opportunity creation as competition itself.

A survey commissioned by JetSynthesys and conducted by YouGov found that 81 per cent of Indian esports players have considered pursuing esports professionally, while 56 per cent expressed interest in adjacent careers such as coaching, content creation and team management.

“Season 2 proved that e-cricket can hold its own on a prime-time broadcast stage,” said JetSynthesys senior vice president for Sports Jogesh Lulla.

“What we’re building with GEPL is an IP that is not just a tournament but a career engine for India’s next generation of esports champions,” he said.

Last season’s breakout story came through Chennai Falcons’ title-winning campaign and the rise of Sukhpreet Singh, who emerged as one of the league’s biggest grassroots success stories after winning Season 2 MVP, Player of the Series and Top Wicket Taker honours.

And perhaps that is exactly why GEPL is beginning to matter beyond gaming circles. It is no longer simply about virtual cricket matches. It is about fandom, careers, entertainment and the growing reality that for millions of young Indians, competitive sport now exists as much on a mobile screen as it does on a stadium field.