IPL 2026 ad volumes on linear TV rise 4%, says TAM Sports
CE DESK 
IPL 2026 delivered a modest but meaningful lift for television advertising, with linear TV ad volumes rising 4% compared with the previous season, according to TAM Sports. The analysis covered all 70 matches played between 28 March and 24 May and looked only at live match broadcasts, excluding pre-match, mid-match and post-match content.
The report suggests that cricket’s biggest properties still remain highly attractive to brands despite the growing split between TV and connected TV. On linear television, the biggest gains came from mass-reach categories such as e-commerce, mouth fresheners, two-wheelers and energy drinks, showing that IPL continues to be a powerful vehicle for high-frequency consumer advertising.
Among categories, “Ecom-Other Services” emerged as the largest advertiser group, accounting for 14% of linear TV ad volumes and 11% on CTV. Mouth fresheners followed closely on linear TV with a 13% share, while two-wheelers and energy drinks each contributed 6%, and paints held 5%. This mix shows that linear TV still performs best for broad-appeal brands that want scale quickly.
Google led advertiser rankings on both linear TV and CTV, reinforcing how technology brands now see cricket as a mainstream platform rather than a niche digital buy. On linear TV, Reliance Consumer Products ranked second, followed by Havells India, Vishnu Packaging and K P Pan Foods, while on CTV the top spenders included Tata Motors, Havells, Reliance Consumer Products and Amazon Online India.
The TAM Sports findings also point to a growing dual-screen strategy among advertisers. While linear TV continued to be dominated by a few mass-market categories, CTV showed a broader spread of digital-first, auto, electronics and consumer durable advertisers, indicating that brands are increasingly using both environments for different goals.
Overall, the 4% rise in linear TV volumes signals that IPL remains a high-value property for advertisers, especially for brands seeking scale, frequency and mass-market reach in a competitive media landscape.
