ISL-4: Viewership of first match grows by 59%

New Delhi, Nov 23 (IANS) The inaugural match between ATK and Kerala Blasters FC got 25 million total TV impressions and registered an impressive 59 per cent growth over last seasons opening game of the fourth Indian Super League (ISL), it was announced on Thursday

The opening game of the league recorded 7.4 million average impressions, which is double the India-US opening game at U-17 FIFA World Cup.

This year, the fourth-month long season along with the addition of two new teams -- Bengaluru FC and Jamshedpur FC -- has added more thrill to the Indian football season.

"We are thrilled with the response that the Hero Indian Super League is getting from football fans across India," Sanjay Gupta, MD, Star India, said.

"The growth demonstrated is across urban, rural and digital audiences which indeed proves that Future Hai Football! We are looking forward to having an exhilarating journey on this biggest ever season of the league," he added.

A total of 95 matches will be played in the the season between 10 teams. Each out of 10 teams will play in a home-and-away format in 90 games. The two-legged semi-finals of the ISL league are scheduled to take place in the second week of March 2018.

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