Will IPL 2025 beat the economic headwinds?

The early announcement of the IPL 2025 schedule has sparked excitement among fans, with the media and advertising industry banking on the tournament to offset recent economic challenges.

Stakeholders are curious whether the IPL 2025 will surpass last season's ₹4,300 crore ad revenue. Adding to the intrigue is the merger between Star Sports and JioCinema’s parent entities, a move that could redefine the landscape of India’s most high-profile sports tournament.

After all, India’s top advertisers, including FMCG and auto giants, have scaled back spending this year due to a range of factors such as softening demands, inflation, general elections and assembly elections in many large states. Meanwhile, a sharp decline in the country’s GDP growth to 5.4% in the July-September quarter has further complicated the scenario.

Media agency heads acknowledge that dampened market sentiments have clouded expectations. Industry leaders say the upcoming IPL season may see a muted growth in ad revenue for media partners. 

“Combined ad revenues of TV and OTT for IPL 2025 could grow mid-single digits from the previous season and likely to close at roughly Rs 4,500 crore,” executives associated with two global media agencies told e4m.   

Some media planners shared a different point of view. They speculate that the next season may cross Rs 5,500 crore, driven by primarily digital advertisements. 

Brands who partnered with the TV and OTT partners in the last season are still weighing their investment strategies. “This year has been a difficult one as demand didn’t pick up. Consumers are spending very cautiously. Due to budgetary constraints, we have no clarity over the IPL so far,” said a chief marketing officer of an FMCG major. 

Will startups return? 

In recent years, IPL advertising has been significantly driven by new-age firms like BYJU’s, PhonePe, Pristyn Care, Niyo. However, a dip in VC funding and a slowdown in the global tech sector coupled with financial mess at some startups, prompted these advertisers to leave the IPL in recent years due to the high investment cost. 

While companies like Dream11, My11Circle, Groww, Cred, and Upstox invested in the last season, the overall advertiser pool has shrunk. 

Industry watchers say those startups may not return to the IPL anytime soon due to multiple factors due to ongoing funding winter. 

A media planner said, “Some of India’s glorious startups, who rocked the tournament in 2021 and 2022, are unlikely to return this year as well, as the funding environment hasn't improved much yet. Besides, VCs and angel investors are keeping a strict vigil on their marketing spends.”

According to the latest report from Traxcn, in the year 2024, $16.1 billion has been raised in funding rounds across India. In the same period last year, $18.3 billion had been raised which means the current calendar year registered a 12 percent drop. 

Merger impact 

Disney Star and Viacom18, who remained arch rivals over the last few years due to their competing interests in the IPL, have been merged officially. Both entities are still under an internal restructuring process. 

“While top leadership of each vertical has been named, the team which usually holds discussions with brands and agencies are yet to be finalised. Moreover, many Start Sports executives had already quit which created a vacuum. All these things need to be sorted out before the merged entity goes before the advertisers,” said the executive.

“As part of seeking the regulatory watchdog's approval, the parties have voluntarily agreed not to bundle TV ad slots for IPL, ICC, and BCCI cricketing rights until the end of existing rights. Hence, no major churn in advertising cost or revenue is expected this year,” quips another. 

It is still unclear whether the RIL will keep both OTT platforms, JioCinema and Disney+ Hotstar, as separate streaming platforms, or absorb one of them in the process. Company officials say, “We are still working on it. Things will be clearer by the end of this month or maybe in January. There is still time for the IPL.”

Nevertheless, by unifying their operations, the merged entity could edge out competitors like YouTube, smaller OTT platforms, or traditional broadcasters trying to gain a foothold in the IPL ad space, industry experts say. 

An agency executive says, “The merger will not only streamline advertising across platforms but also position the combined entity to command higher ad revenues through broader reach, better audience segmentation, and integrated campaigns. This synergy is poised to create a transformative impact on the IPL advertising landscape in the coming years.”

IPL 2024 sponsors

Star Sports’ roster of brands include Cadbury Dairy Milk, Havells Lloyd, Hide & Seek, Vanessa, Rupay Credit, Parle Products, Harpic, HDFC Payzapp, and Groww, Dream11, Vimal, Asian Paints, Charged By Thums Up, Joy, Dettol, and Amul. 

JioCinema has Dream11, Tata Motors, PayZapp by HDFC Bank, SBI, Cred, AMFI, Upstox, Charged by Thums Up, Britannia, Pepsi, Parle products, Google Pixel, Haier, Jindal Steel, Vodafone, Dalmia Cements, Kamla Pasand and Rapido on it side.