F&B leads IPL 18 advertisers’ tally with 36% share: TAM Sports

The 18th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) witnessed a notable uptick in advertising activity, according to a commercial advertising report released by TAM Sports. While the number of advertising categories remained consistent with the previous edition, IPL 18 recorded a 30% rise in advertisers and a 29% increase in brands compared to IPL 17.

Food & Beverages (F&B), Services, and Banking, Financial Services and Insurance (BFSI) emerged as three of the top five sectors dominating ad volumes this season. Collectively, the top five sectors contributed 80% of total ad volumes during IPL 18, slightly down from 82% in IPL 17. F&B led the tally with a commanding 36% share, followed by Services and the Auto sector.

Within categories, F&B continued its stronghold. Mouth Fresheners retained the top spot in both IPL 17 and IPL 18. E-commerce Gaming held on to the third position for two consecutive seasons, signalling sustained interest from gaming platforms. The concentration of ad volumes among top categories has slightly decreased, with the top five accounting for 40% in IPL 18 compared to 43% in IPL 17.

Among individual advertisers, Parle Biscuits led with the highest share of ad volume at 8%. Meanwhile, brands like Sporta Technologies (Dream11), K P Pan Foods, and Vishnu Packaging featured among the top five advertisers in both IPL 17 and IPL 18, reflecting their continued reliance on the cricketing spectacle for brand visibility.

In terms of brands, Vimal Elaichi topped the charts during IPL 18, overtaking Parle Food Products, which led in IPL 16. Vimal Elaichi and Dream11.com were the two brands common in the top five lists of both IPL 17 and IPL 18. However, the collective share of the top five brands saw a noticeable decline, contributing 22% to total ad volumes this season compared to 32% in the previous one.

Notably, over 25 new advertising categories debuted in IPL 18, with Properties/Real Estate and Cellular Phone Services leading the charge. On the flip side, a similar number of categories that featured in IPL 17 were absent this year, indicating a reshuffling of brand priorities.

A total of 186 brands advertised across both regional and national (Hindi and English) sports channels during the 74-match tournament. Vimal Elaichi emerged as the most dominant brand across both language feeds, underscoring its aggressive media strategy.

Average ad volume per channel per match also saw a marginal increase of 0.5% in IPL 18 compared to IPL 17  

Ad duration trends also saw a reversal this year. During IPL 18, sub-10-second ads were the most frequently used format, displacing the 11–20 second format that was preferred during IPL 17.