When star players from the US, the West Indies, Canada and Papua New Guinea play their first ICC T20 Cricket World Cup matches on June 2, it would be about one week from the time the IPL ends. Media agency heads say official broadcaster Disney Star is eyeing at least 400 million in TV viewership and 300 million on Disney+ Hotstar during the tournament.
With the 2-month,74-match IPL extravaganza just concluded and considering that India is not the host nation for this tournament, can it attract these kinds of numbers? Match timings could play spoilsport. With different time zones in the US, several matches are scheduled to begin at odd hours such as 6 am and 12:30 pm (IST), though some fixtures are at a more convenient 8 pm. Commentators are also concerned that many star players may not be able to bring their A-game to the field after the gruelling IPL campaign.
To put things in perspective, the T20 World Cup 2022 garnered 390-400 million TV viewers and over 300 digital viewers. Ad revenue for the tournament was an estimated Rs 1,000 crore.
N Santosh, managing partner at D&P Advisory, notes, “In just eight months, we have had three major cricket tournaments — the ODI World Cup, IPL and the upcoming T20 World Cup. There will be some spending fatigue for Indian advertisers, especially with the Olympics and EURO 2024 also scheduled. Brands will need to be more strategic with their ad budget allocations.”
However, he adds that the T20 World Cup still remains a high visibility event that draws large audiences in the Indian subcontinent, and can offer substantial returns in brand exposure and engagement.
According to Sarfaraz Ansari, senior vice-president, Mudramax, there are multiple factors impacting advertiser participation for this tournament. Aside from the packed cricketing schedule, election campaigns have also taken the steam out of advertisers and therefore, brands are looking beyond high-impact and high-cost cricket properties. “Advertiser sentiment and intent are low. Nearly half the matches are in the morning time band and they are not key matches. Further, unlike the last World Cup, during the league stages, three out of four India fixtures in the T20 tournament are against minnows. That will affect both audience interest and ratings,” says Ansari, adding that several advertisers are taking the wait-and-watch approach before investing in the tournament.
As per industry sources, TV ad rates for the tournament are pegged at Rs 6.4 lakh per 10 seconds, lower than the Rs 9-10 lakh that Disney Star had sought in the previous T20 World Cup in 2022. India fixtures and knockout stage games are priced much higher, at over Rs 15 lakh per 10 seconds, and depending on the viewership, that number could go much higher. Digital rates are Rs 230 per thousand impressions (CPM), while the number is around Rs 500 per CPM for India and knockout games.
Still in the game
Despite the underwhelming advertiser interest, experts estimate that Disney Star could earn up to Rs 2,000 crore from the T20 World Cup. The fact that the ongoing IPL has seen a 38% rise in advertisers on TV (as per TAM Sports) is an encouraging sign.
On its part, the broadcaster has gone all out to maximise advertiser interest and investment. In an interview with FE earlier this month, Ajit Varghese, head of network advertising sales at Disney Star, said that the company is working with advertisers across categories to help them leverage the tournament through customised offerings and engagement initiatives. Disney+ Hotstar also recently announced the launch of a new version of its self-serve platform for brands in five languages, which offers end-to-end automation and a campaign launch process that takes less than three hours.
Andre Augustine at ITW Universe notes that brands are identifying options beyond ad spots this World Cup. These include pop-ups during live telecast during key moments like the fall of a wicket or a boundary. He also argues that despite some apprehension in the industry, viewership is not likely to see a major dip because most India games will be at prime time, starting at 8 pm. “Considering this is a four-week-long tournament, it will see sustained viewership because the majority will come from the India fixtures,” says Augustine.
Eeshita Ghosh, managing partner, South for GroupM’s Motivator, agrees, adding that advertisers are waiting for the IPL to conclude before closing their World Cup deals. “In the past, we have seen auto and tech categories largely spending because of the male skew in viewership. Now, as broadcasters are also designing special packages, many small budget clients are tapping the platform,” she remarks. She argues that even with a small budget, brands can create a big impact with smart creatives, placements and with FCT (free commercial time) and non-FCT elements.