Sun TV Network posts 30% growth in Q2 revenue

Profit for Sun TV Network, however, fell around 13%

by e4m Staff
Published: Nov 14, 2025 5:18 PM | 2 min read

Sun TV Network delivered a robust jump in revenues in the September quarter, driven largely by its expanded cricket franchise portfolio and higher operating income, but the gains were tempered by a steep rise in expenses and depreciation that pulled down quarterly profits.

The company’s Q2 FY26 revenue rose to ₹1440 crore from ₹1107 crore a year earlier, marking a growth of about 30%. For the first half of FY26, revenue stood at ₹2919 crore compared to ₹2567 crore in H1 FY25, up nearly 14%.

Revenue from operations saw an even sharper rise. It increased to ₹1300 crore in Q2 FY26 from ₹935 crore in the same quarter last year, reflecting a 39% jump. In H1, operational revenues rose to ₹2590 crore from ₹2249 crore, up around 15%.

This strong growth was accompanied by a significant escalation in costs. Total expenses for the quarter surged to ₹923.5 crore from ₹594 crore in Q2 FY25, an increase of about 55%. For the half-year period, expenses climbed to ₹1705 crore from ₹1305 crore, up nearly 31%. Depreciation and amortisation more than doubled in the quarter, rising to ₹404 crore from ₹196 crore, an increase of about 106%, while in H1 it rose 65% to ₹511 crore from ₹309 crore.

The cost spikes pushed down profitability even as revenues grew. Profit after tax fell to ₹354 crore in Q2 FY26 from ₹409 crore a year earlier, a decline of around 13%. For H1, PAT stood at ₹883 crore compared to ₹969 crore in H1 FY25, lower by nearly 9%.

A major highlight of the quarter was Sun TV Network’s acquisition of 100% stake in Sunrisers Leeds Limited (formerly Northern Superchargers Limited), a franchise in England’s The Hundred cricket league. The holding company completed the acquisition for GBP 100.5 million on July 28, 2025, making Sunrisers Leeds its wholly owned subsidiary.

The results for the quarter and half-year also include consolidated cricket franchise income from Sunrisers Hyderabad, Sunrisers Eastern Cape and Sunrisers Leeds. The company recorded franchise income of ₹94.52 crore in Q2 FY26 versus ₹0.09 crore a year ago. For the half-year, franchise income rose to ₹567.55 crore from ₹497.14 crore. Corresponding franchise-related costs in Q2 stood at ₹72.70 crore compared to ₹1.34 crore in Q2 FY25, while in H1 they rose to ₹328.79 crore from ₹237.76 crore.

Sun TV Network's media portfolio includes satellite television channels across Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Bangla, Marathi and Hindi, FM radio stations nationwide, a movie production business, three cricket franchises across India, South Africa and the UK, and its digital OTT platform Sun NXT.