India’s scintillating victory over New Zealand in the ICC T20 World Cup final didn’t just delight the country’s billion cricket fans but also had advertisers glued to their screens, albeit for different reasons. When concurrent viewership on JioHotstar peaked at 821 million towards the end of the game — that’s a massive jump from the 53 million that watched the India-South Africa final in the 2024 World Cup — one got a fair idea of what to expect this Indian Premier League (IPL) season.
Industry sources say that broadcaster JioStar is leveraging the momentum from India’s big win and the record viewership numbers to maximise its advertising revenues during the upcoming cricketing extravaganza. The 19th season of the IPL is set to get off the mark on March 28, and a media agency executive says that 10-second TV spots on HD and SD TV have already been hiked to Rs 19-20 lakh, well above the asking rate of Rs 16 lakh last year.
The connected TV (CTV) rates are up from Rs 500 CPM (cost per mille) last year to Rs 700 this season. Mobile rates are at Rs 400 CPM, up from Rs 300 last year. Industry sources add that the broadcaster has set high revenue ambitions this season, expecting to hit Rs 5,000 to Rs 5,200 crore in advertising earnings. Last year, JioStar earned an estimated Rs 4,500 crore in ad revenue.
Advertiser sentiment for the IPL is currently positive and cricket’s emotional connection with audiences has grown post the World Cup win, says Sandiip Kapur, founder & president, Promodome Group. He expects that brands from categories like fintech, e-commerce, FMCG and consumer durables will be the big spenders this year, pressures from the West Asia conflict notwithstanding.
“The West Asia situation might impact some businesses but it will not create major financial losses for IPL advertising, which is dominated by domestic consumption-driven sectors. Most advertisers will continue to advertise through high-exposure channels such as the IPL to reach consumers during times when global conditions remain unpredictable,” says Kapur.
JioStar has got six sponsors on board for the digital broadcast – Birla Opus, Rapido, AMFI, Amazon, Vimal and MRF. Rapido, Asian Paints, Hero MotoCorp, AMFI and Vimal are the five sponsors for the TV broadcast. Last year, the IPL saw 425 brands across 40 categories on board across TV and digital, according to a report by JioStar and Media Partners Asia.
Despite the upbeat consumer sentiment, Santosh N, managing partner at D and P Advisory points out that unlike last year, this season will be marked by the absence of real money gaming (RMG) brands, which accounted for over 30% of the ad revenues in 2025. This gap, coupled with the ongoing war and global economic uncertainties, could reduce overall ad revenues, adds Santosh.
In the recently concluded T20 World Cup, JioStar earned an estimated Rs 1,500-1,600 crore, falling short of the 2,000 crore target it had set. Observers note that factors like increased US tariffs and tensions in the Middle East affected spending during the tournament. Moreover, the fact that the World Cup was held close to the fiscal year-end meant that advertisers had limited budgets, but the IPL will not face that challenge.
Social media platforms like Snapchat are already leveraging the growing fandom to help brands create customised AR lenses, giving them visibility at the moment users are actively seeking cricket content.
Game of eyeballs
Last season, the IPL drew over a billion viewers across TV and digital, demonstrating the tournament’s massive reach and growing digital penetration. It will be interesting to see if JioStar can build viewership further. “Streaming adoption, wider accessibility, and growing interest across demographics are all contributing to the league’s expansion,” says Vaishal Dalal, co-founder & director of Excellent Publicity. He notes that the IPL ecosystem is already large, so the growth in viewership or ad revenue may not be dramatic but rather steady.
According to Bharat Subramanian, founder & director at BigTrunk Communications, advertisers are not just looking at buying inventory during the IPL broadcast. “Brands are showing strong intent to invest across digital, social and integrated formats, creating multiple revenue streams. The combination of heightened fan enthusiasm, expanded OTT viewership, and creative activations suggests that ad revenues could comfortably exceed last year’s benchmarks,” says Subramanian, noting that younger audiences tend to engage more on social media, creating organic content amplification during the matches.
Brands are likely to target other platforms too such as Cricbuzz and Cricinfo and gaming platforms to drive more engagement. Subramanian explains that the league is now a 360-degree entertainment experience, and this convergence of sports, fandom and content consumption will further strengthen audience reach across platforms.