Pro Kabaddi gets bigger and better with an increase in the number of teams and matches for the upcoming fifth season to be held in July.
More than 130 matches will be held in the new season, compared to the 60 from the season 4.
The newly renamed Vivo Pro Kabaddi has eight teams — Dabang Delhi, U Mumba, Bengaluru Bulls, Bengal Warriors, Telugu Titans, Jaipur Pink Panthers, Puneri Paltan and Patna Pirates — and will have four more teams in the upcoming season, taking the total tally to 12 teams.
The announcement was made by the managing director of Star India Sanjay Gupta here on Monday with the purpose on increasing the geographical representation of the tournament.
"In the fifth season of Pro Kabaddi league, we are going to expand to new geographies and bring new teams," Sanjay Gupta said. "We want fans from different regions to be more involved in the game. The number of matches will also grow from 60 to more than 130," he added.
As the emphasis is on involving regional fans more, Star has also focused on increasing the number of languages it is broadcasted in. So far it is telecasted in five languages — Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Marathi.
"We plan to add one more regional language option for viewers in the new season. like any other sports, if the Kabaddi matches are broadcasted in viewers' mother tongue, the desire to follow the game increases. For instance, rating of Kabaddi matches in Andhra were close to that of cricket matches in the region as viewership increased due to telecast in Telugu," elaborated the managing director at an event when Pro Kabaddi signed on VIVO as the title sponsor for five years.
Also present at the ceremony were Pro Kabaddi stars Anup Kumar and Rahul Chaudhari, along with former Australian cricketers Brett lee and Matthew Hayden.