IPL linear TV ratings drop 18.8%
- IPL 2026’s first half has weakened on linear TV, with BARC and TAM Sports data showing ratings and advertiser participation both dropping sharply. - The clearest hit is an 18.8% ratings fall to 3.71 from 4.57, while average TV viewership slid 26% to 7.84 million. - That matters because the next IPL rights auction is due after 2027, and digital now looks stronger than television.
IPL’s problem is not that people suddenly stopped caring about cricket. The problem is where they are watching. Early-season data for IPL 2026 shows a clear drop on linear television — ratings are down 18.8%, average TV viewership is down 26%, and the number of advertisers on TV has fallen by roughly 31%. But the same set of reports says connected TV and digital are gaining, which means the audience is moving rather than disappearing. ### What exactly fell? The headline number is the TV rating. It dropped to 3.71 in 2026 from 4.57 in 2025. Average linear viewership also fell from 10.6 million to 7.84 million. On the ad side, TV advertisers dropped from more than 65 last season to about 45 this season. That is a meaningful change, not a rounding error. ### Is this an IPL problem or a TV problem? Mostly a TV problem. India’s broader viewing market has been shifting away from classic linear television for a while. One recent industry explainer put digital-only viewers at 313 in all — it may just mean the screen changed. ### Why are advertisers pulling back on TV? Part of it is platform shift, and part of it is category mix. Exchange4Media’s reporting points to fewer TV advertisers even though inventory stayed broadly similar. It also flags the absence or weakening of the same TV slots, while some budgets are likely being redirected to digital and connected TV. ### Why does connected TV matter so much? Because connected TV is the bridge product. It feels like television to the viewer — big screen, living room, shared watching — but it behaves like digital for targeting and measurement. One report says IPL 2026’s opening weekend really lives now. ### How does this hit the rights market? The current IPL rights cycle runs from 2023 to 2027. In the 2022 auction, Disney Star took India TV rights for ₹23,575 crore, while Viacom18 won digital rights for ₹23,758 crore, with total media rights value reaching ₹48,390 crore. As digital usage keeps rising, the next auction after 2027 could tilt even harder toward streaming and CTV. ### Does weaker TV mean the IPL is less valuable? Not necessarily. That is the catch. The IPL can still be an extremely valuable sports property even if one distribution pipe is fading. Franchise values and investor appetite will find a way to price it. ### So what should people watch next? Two things. First, whether the second half of IPL 2026 stabilizes TV numbers at all. Second, whether digital platforms can prove they are not just stealing audience from TV, but monetizing that audience better. If they can, the next rights auction will not just be a renewal. It will be a repricing of what IPL distribution actually is. ### Bottom line The real story is not “IPL is down.” It is “linear TV is losing its monopoly on premium cricket.” That sounds subtle, but it changes who pays, how much they pay, and which screen matters most by the time the 2027 rights negotiations arrive.
