Delhi HC Refers JioStar-Absolute Legends Dispute Over Legends League Cricket Media Rights To Arbitration
Shivani PS
12 May 2026 6:21 PM IST
The Delhi High Court has referred disputes between JioStar India Pvt. Ltd. and Absolute Legends Sports Pvt. Ltd. over the media and commercial rights of the Legends League Cricket Masters T20 tournament to arbitration. It held that arbitral proceedings should not be unduly delayed once parties before the court agree to arbitrate.
Justice Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar appointed Senior Advocate Kamal Nijhawan as sole arbitrator. The court also directed that franchise fee collections and ticket revenues shall not be dealt with pending arbitration.
“It is further directed that the amounts received towards franchise fee as well as ticket collections, as articulated in paragraph 11 of the Affidavit dated 04.04.2026, shall not be dealt with by the Respondents in any manner whatsoever and shall remain subject to further orders to be passed by the learned Arbitrator. ” the court said.
The dispute arose from a Media Rights Agreement dated September 16, 2024 and an Airtime Sale Agreement dated September 18, 2024. These agreements were between JioStar and Absolute Legends for the broadcasting and commercial exploitation rights of the Legends League Cricket Masters T20 tournament.
Both agreements contained arbitration clauses with New Delhi as the seat.
JioStar moved the High Court under Section 9 (interim relief) of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, claiming that ₹3.59 crore remained outstanding. It alleged that Absolute Legends was attempting to commercially exploit and transfer the league's rights through Respondent No. 2 and third-party platforms including Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube, in breach of its contractual rights.
The broadcaster sought a deposit of the outstanding amount or equivalent security. It also sought restraint orders against the transfer of rights, disclosure of third-party agreements, protection of tournament revenues, and a stay on the termination of the agreements.
The dispute had earlier led to an interim order on March 18, 2026, restraining Absolute Legends from creating third-party rights or otherwise dealing with the tournament's media and commercial rights.
When the matter came up subsequently, the parties before the court agreed to refer their disputes to arbitration. In view of that consensus, the court dispensed with the requirement of a separate notice invoking arbitration. It also dispensed with independent proceedings for appointment of an arbitrator.
Recording the undertaking by Absolute Legends Sports Pvt. Ltd. and the second respondent, the court directed that the franchise fee and ticket collection amounts be maintained intact. It also directed that no third-party interest be created in them until further orders of the arbitrator.
Noting that the disputes were valued at about ₹4 crore, the court said all rights and objections would remain open before the arbitral tribunal. This included jurisdictional objections. The court also directed that JioStar's pending interim relief petition be treated as an application for interim relief before the arbitrator.