MUMBAI: India’s favourite cricket carnival isn’t just smashing sixes on the field—it’s delivering knockout punches off it too. According to TAM Sports’ latest “Commercial Advertising Report” for IPL Season 18, ad volumes soared 10.5 per cent over last season, with brands and advertisers pouring into the league like never before.
Average ad volume per channel per match nudged up by 0.5 per cent, but the real action was in the format. Blink and you’d miss it: sub-10 second spots were the most preferred ad length in IPL 18, overtaking the 11–20 second bracket that ruled in IPL 17. Short and sharp is clearly in.
IPL 18 introduced over 25 fresh ad categories to the mix—including properties/real estate, branded jewellery, and cellular services—while more than 25 from IPL 17 vanished from the screen (goodbye chocolates and cement).
The number of advertisers and brands jumped 30 per cent and 29 per cent respectively. Parle Biscuits took the top spot among advertisers (8 per cent share), while Vimal Elaichi chewed up the charts as the most advertised brand.
Food & beverages led sectoral spends with 36 per cent share, followed by services (23 per cent) and auto (nine per cent). Mouth fresheners remained a favourite, topping both IPL 17 and 18, with ecom-gaming holding steady in third place.
A total of 186 brands advertised across both regional and national (Hindi + English) sports channels, with Vimal Elaichi emerging as the MVP across language segments. Meanwhile, the likes of Amul and Puravankara focused on national visibility, while brands like Walkmate and Maliban stuck to regional turf.
The final match of IPL 18 clocked the highest ad volume growth compared to its IPL 17 counterpart, proving once again that cricket’s climax is prime time for marketers.
As IPL continues to evolve from sport to spectacle, it’s clear advertisers are no longer playing it safe—they’re playing to win, and in ever shorter bursts.