IPL 2026: Fewer brands but stronger shift in advertiser mix?

Early numbers from this year’s Indian Premier League advertising scenario have raised eyebrows across the media and marketing ecosystem owing to the drop in number of TV advertisers by 31% and categories by nearly 20% in the first 13 matches compared to the previous edition, according to a TAM Sports report.

However, a section of industry experts say the shift is less about declining appeal and more about a rapidly evolving media and advertiser landscape.

Structural shift, not a sudden drop

“It is too early to say that IPL is losing its charm,” said Vinay Hegde, CEO Investments (Media), Madison World, calling the trend a “collateral effect of the way the ecosystem is moving.”

According to Hegde, multiple factors are at play. Regulatory pressure on gaming, pricing strategies by broadcasters and broader macroeconomic caution are all influencing advertiser decisions. He also pointed to the ongoing West Asia conflict, noting that it continues to cast a shadow on business sentiment.

“It would be difficult to isolate which contributes more,” he added, referring to the 31% drop in advertisers.

Advertiser consolidation and premiumisation

Karan Kumar, CMO, Hero Realty, believes the headline numbers need to be viewed through the lens of advertiser mix.

“A large part of the perceived drop in ad volumes could be linked to the shift in advertiser mix rather than a decline in the property itself,” he said.

Kumar explained that last year’s IPL saw disproportionate spends from a few categories, particularly gaming, along with segments like mouth fresheners and e-commerce. “If some of these high-spending categories reduce their outlay, the overall inventory uptake will naturally appear lower,” he noted.

He added that this is “more a function of category participation than weakening consumer interest,” highlighting that IPL monetisation is closely tied to which sectors are active in a given year.

At the same time, advertiser consolidation is visible. Fewer brands are accounting for a larger share of spends, reinforcing IPL’s positioning as premium inventory. Categories like BFSI, digital wallets and e-commerce services continue to dominate, while mouth fresheners have increased their share of voice.

The gaming pullback and category churn

A key trigger this season has been the reduced participation of gaming and fantasy sports platforms such as Dream11, which were among the biggest IPL advertisers in recent years.

These platforms had significantly inflated ad volumes, but tighter government scrutiny around real-money gaming and restrictions on surrogate advertising have led many to pull back, especially from television.

The impact goes beyond gaming. Categories such as smartphones, airlines and real estate have also seen reduced participation, contributing to the overall 20% drop in advertiser categories.

Shift from scale to efficiency

Another key shift is in the advertiser mindset.

Kumar pointed out that brands are increasingly prioritising efficiency-led spending over scale-led strategies. “As marketers, we evaluate platforms based on audience delivery, engagement and contextual relevance,” he said, adding that IPL continues to deliver strongly on these parameters.

However, the approach is changing. Instead of high-volume buying, brands are focusing on precision targeting and measurable ROI, often spreading budgets across platforms.

TV is no longer the full story

The decline in TV advertisers also reflects a deeper shift in consumption.

“It would be premature to conclude that IPL is seeing a structural drop in viewership based purely on early television data,” said a leading FMCG company’s media head.

He explained that last year, gaming platforms were among the largest contributors to TV ad volumes, and their absence is skewing perception. At the same time, “there is a clear migration of audiences to OTT and connected TV,” with many new-age advertisers prioritising digital platforms.

“Television alone is no longer a reliable metric to judge IPL’s performance,” he added, pointing to the growing role of streaming ecosystems such as Jiostar.

The measurement problem

This shift has exposed a deeper industry challenge.

A significant portion of IPL consumption now happens across OTT and connected TV, but there is no unified measurement system to capture combined reach. Digital platforms operate in silos, and comprehensive cross-platform data remains limited.

As a result, comparing advertiser counts or viewership purely on television creates an incomplete picture of the tournament’s actual scale.

Early trends vs full-season reality

Experts also caution against over-indexing on early match data. Advertiser participation typically builds as the tournament progresses, driven by team performance and audience engagement.

External factors such as rain disruptions and limited early-match inventory can also temporarily impact ad volumes.

An evolving IPL ecosystem

Taken together, the 31% drop in TV advertisers reflects a transition rather than a decline.

“The IPL continues to be a high-impact platform,” Kumar said, adding that the focus for broadcasters should be on “sustaining value perception” and diversifying the advertiser base.

The bigger shift, he noted, is that IPL is no longer a TV-first property. It is increasingly a cross-platform ecosystem where success depends on integrated planning across television and digital.

For advertisers, the playbook is changing. And for the IPL, the challenge is not relevance, but adapting to a fragmented, multi-screen world where measurement is still catching up.