Celebrity endorsements strengthened their hold on IPL advertising during the tournament’s 19th season, with celebrity-led ad volumes growing 34% compared to IPL 18, according to a new report by TAM Sports. Celebrity-endorsed advertisements accounted for 61% of total ad volumes during IPL 19, up from 53% in the previous season.
The report found that celebrities featured in nearly two-thirds of all advertising during the tournament, highlighting brands’ continued reliance on star power to capture audience attention during one of India’s biggest sporting events. The ratio of celebrity-endorsed to non-celebrity ads shifted from 53:47 in IPL 18 to 61:39 in IPL 19.
Film personalities remained the preferred choice for advertisers. Film actors accounted for 55% of celebrity-endorsed ad volumes, while film actresses contributed 22%. Sports personalities represented 22% of celebrity-endorsed advertising, with television actors making up the remaining 1%. Collectively, film stars contributed more than three-fourths of all celebrity-led ad volumes during the season.
The number of celebrities featured in IPL advertising also increased. More than 70 celebrities appeared in advertisements during IPL 19, compared to over 60 in IPL 18. The count of sports celebrities rose by 52%, crossing 30 personalities during the latest season.
Among individual endorsers, Shah Rukh Khan emerged as the most visible celebrity, accounting for 10% of celebrity-endorsed ad volumes during IPL 19. He was followed by Ishaan Khatter at 9%, while Ajay Devgn, Amyra Dastur and Tiger Shroff each held a 7% share. Shah Rukh Khan had also topped the rankings in IPL 18.
Among sports personalities, Rohit Sharma led the charts with a 22.1% share of celebrity-endorsed sports advertising volumes, followed by Hardik Pandya at 16%. Virat Kohli, Abhishek Sharma and Vaibhav Suryavanshi also featured among the top five sports endorsers.
The report further noted that the top five categories endorsed by celebrities spanned diverse sectors, including mouth fresheners, e-commerce services, paints, financial institutions and air conditioners. Together, the top five categories contributed 71% of celebrity-endorsed ad volumes, while the top five advertisers accounted for 68%.
The findings are based on commercial advertising aired during live IPL 19 matches across Star Network and JioHotstar feeds, excluding pre-, mid- and post-match programming, promotional content and social advertising.
