Influencer marketing surrounding the Indian Premier League (IPL) is undergoing a period of high-velocity growth. According to a new analysis by Qoruz, brand spending in this segment is projected to reach nearly Rs 700 crore in the 2026 season. This represents a significant increase from Rs 250 crore in 2023 and Rs 550 crore in 2025, reflecting an average annual growth rate of approximately 40% over the four-year period.
The report indicates that influencer marketing is claiming a larger portion of the overall digital advertising landscape. For the 2026 season, total IPL digital ad expenditure is expected to range between Rs 3,800 crore and Rs 4,400 crore, up from the Rs 3,200 – Rs 3,800 crore range recorded in 2025. Within this ecosystem, influencer-led campaigns are projected to account for 16-18% of total digital advertising spends.
The surge in spending is closely linked to a sharp rise in audience participation and the volume of creators involved in the tournament. Engagement across social platforms grew from 1.4 billion interactions in 2023 to roughly 2.6 billion in 2025, marking an 86% increase in just two years. Simultaneously, the number of creators posting IPL-related content rose from 645,000 in 2023 to nearly 1.2 million in 2025, with projections suggesting this figure will exceed 1.5 million in 2026. Regarding platform dominance, Instagram remains the primary hub for IPL creator activity with a 52% share, followed by YouTube at 28%, X at 12%, and Facebook at 8%.
The analysis also reveals which content categories and influencer tiers are driving the most value for brands. Sports creators lead with 32% of total engagement, followed by arts and entertainment at 30% and meme-driven content at 18%. Smaller shares are held by fashion and beauty at 8%, and travel and food at 6%.
As per the reports, in terms of budget allocation, brands are diversifying their spend across various creator tiers rather than concentrating only on celebrities. A-list creators receive 32% of budgets, while mega creators account for 25%. Macro creators take an 18% share, followed by micro creators at 15% and nano creators at 10% of campaign spending.
Growth is being sustained by a shift in category participation across the market. FMCG brands currently lead influencer collaborations with a 32% share, followed by e-commerce and retail at 17%, and entertainment and OTT platforms at 16%. Consumer tech and telecom contribute 15% of the activity, while fintech and payments brands account for 10%.
Automotive brands represent 6% of collaborations, with the remaining 4% spread across sectors such as travel and wellness. Qoruz concludes that while traditional digital channels still hold a larger share of total expenditure, influencer-led campaigns are growing at a faster pace, making creators central to how brands capture and sustain audience attention throughout the tournament.
Praanesh Bhuvaneswar, Co-Founder and CEO of Qoruz, said, “IPL is no longer just a broadcast moment, it’s an economy in motion. It’s one of the few moments where demand for attention is guaranteed, but supply of attention isn’t. Everyone shows up, but not everything gets seen. What’s changing is that value is now being created in places that didn’t exist a few years ago. IPL isn’t just being watched anymore, it’s being participated in, and that’s where attention is fragmenting and resurfacing across creators.”
Aditya Gurwara, Co-Founder and Head of Brand Alliances at Qoruz, said, “IPL is one of those moments where the internet behaves exactly like cricket fans do. Everyone shows up early for the hype, reacts loudly during the match, and then spends the next hour discussing what just happened. Our data reflects that too. About 34% of creator engagement happens before the match even starts, around 16% during live reactions, but nearly 50% comes after the match, when creators and fans start breaking down moments, celebrating wins, or roasting friends. For brands, that post-match window is where a lot of the real conversation happens.”
