The Tata group extended its IPL title sponsorship deal till 2028 for INR 2500 crore (US$301 million approx).
But what about other IPL Sponsorship opportunities? Yes, you still have the option to associate your brand with IPL teams, players, and their fan base.
Excellent Publicity is a leading IPL advertising agency, working with brands to create the best IPL ads and sponsorship strategy. Based on your budget and objective, we help you drive impact with the IPL ads.
In this guide, we are sharing everything to help get an in-depth idea of how IPL Sponsorships are Structured, what the different types of IPL sponsorships are, and the benefits you get.
How IPL Sponsorships are Structured?
IPL sponsorships operate on three parallel tracks:
IPL Team Sponsorships include jersey sponsors and official partner sponsors. Each team negotiates its own deals based on fan base, performance history, and market positioning.
TV and OTT Sponsorships add another layer. Here, brands don’t associate with BCCI or a team, but with the broadcaster where the matches are streamed. This can include mentions, branded segments, in-studio engagement, and moment marketing opportunities.
Central Sponsorships include title sponsorship, official tournament partners, and category sponsors whose rights extend across all matches and teams. These deliver maximum exposure.
It is important to learn about each of these sponsorships in detail.
IPL Team sponsorships
With Team Association and Official Partnership in the Indian Premier League, brands enter the big leagues of cricket marketing. These opportunities go far beyond traditional TV and OTT ads, offering premium, high-value deliverables and special tier benefits that create deeper brand integration with fans.
a. Team Association
Team association usually means sponsoring a spot on the players' jerseys. There are 10 available positions on each jersey, and each spot comes with different levels of visibility and perks.
Here's what typically comes with a team association deal:
- Your logo on the team jersey (placement depends on which spot you sponsor)
- Permission to use the team logo, player photos, and autographs in your marketing
- The chance to film commercials with players wearing their official jerseys
- Direct meet-and-greet sessions with players
- Your brand on perimeter boards during the team's home matches
- A representative from your company at the coin toss (depending on your agreement)
- Features on the team's social media channels
- Logo placement on the team's website
- Access to create behind-the-scenes content with players
- Complimentary tickets to home games
What you get depends heavily on which jersey spot you secure (front, sleeve, back, and so on.) The beauty here is flexibility. Through smart negotiation, you can customize your package to align perfectly with your marketing goals.
b. Official Partnership
Official Partnership works a bit differently from Team Association. While you might not get as much face time with players, it's still a solid entry point if you're after marketing rights and brand visibility.
As an official partner, you typically receive:
- Exclusive rights within your product category
- Permission to use the team logo across all your marketing materials
- Rights to feature player images in both above-the-line and below-the-line campaigns
- Miniature cricket bats with digital player signatures
- Full-size autographed bats (digital signatures)
- Signed replica team jerseys
- Your logo on the team's official website
- Logo inclusion in the team's marketing campaigns (positioned according to sponsorship hierarchy)
- Social media shoutouts and brand integration
Official Partnership works best for brands that prioritize brand association and credibility over extensive on-ground activations. It's about amplifying your marketing reach through strategic alignment with a beloved IPL team.
Why Choose IPL Team Sponsorships?
Team sponsorships offer something most other advertising channels simply can't match: emotional connection.
When you partner with an IPL team, you're not just buying ad space; you're becoming part of a story that millions of fans live and breathe throughout the season.
Here's why brands choose team sponsorships:
- Passionate, Loyal Audiences: IPL fans don't just watch their teams—they're emotionally invested in them. When your brand appears on a team jersey or gets mentioned alongside player content, you're tapping into that loyalty. Fans notice who supports their team, and they remember.
- Year-Round Visibility: Unlike a 30-second ad spot, team sponsorships keep working long after the match ends. Your logo appears in social media posts, highlight reels, team announcements, and promotional content during the season. But you can get rights to use player images, signs, and the team logo until the next IPL auction.
- Authentic Brand Association: There's a credibility that comes with being an official team partner. It positions your brand as a supporter of the sport, not just another advertiser trying to grab attention. This authentic association builds trust with consumers in ways traditional advertising struggles to achieve.
- Multi-Channel Integration: Team sponsorships aren't one-dimensional. You get presence across TV broadcasts, digital platforms, stadium signage, social media, and more. It's integrated marketing at its finest, creating multiple touchpoints with your audience.
- Flexibility to Match Your Budget: With 10 different jersey positions and various partnership tiers available, you can find an entry point that fits your budget. Whether you're a startup looking for your first major sports partnership or an established brand wanting premium placement, there's an option that works.
- Content Creation Gold: Access to players for commercials, behind-the-scenes content, and meet-and-greets gives you marketing assets you can use across campaigns. This user-generated and brand-created content has a shelf life that extends well beyond the IPL season.
TV and OTT Sponsorships
TV Sponsorship
TV sponsorship during IPL matches goes deeper than buying regular commercial slots. It creates stronger brand recall by weaving your brand into the actual IPL content and key moments. Here are the main ways you can get involved:
- Moment Marketing: Your brand gets highlighted during exciting match moments like "Super Sixes" or "Strategic Time-Outs."
- Segment Sponsorship: You sponsor specific parts of the broadcast—pre-match analysis, the toss, post-match presentations, or mid-innings shows.
- In-Studio Engagement: Your brand gets integrated into expert panel discussions, on-ground activations, and through presenter mentions.
These formats are completely customizable and can be tailored specifically for your brand's needs. The key difference?
Instead of just appearing during commercial breaks, your brand becomes part of the IPL storytelling itself. This creates much stronger associations and better long-term recall.
OTT Sponsorship
OTT sponsorships embed your brand directly into live match streaming through branded segments, in-studio features, or real-time moment marketing. This approach builds powerful brand recall by linking your name with premium IPL content.
Brands typically choose OTT sponsorship when they want to:
- Establish themselves as category leaders
- Focus on long-term brand building rather than quick wins
- Position themselves as premium players in their market
- Stand out from competitors through content integration instead of just running standalone ads
Why Choose TV and OTT Sponsorships?
TV and OTT sponsorships put your brand in front of viewers exactly when they're most engaged—during live cricket action. Unlike team sponsorships that focus on long-term association, broadcast sponsorships are all about capturing attention in the moment.
Here's what makes TV and OTT sponsorships compelling:
- Massive, Guaranteed Reach: IPL broadcasts pull in hundreds of millions of viewers across India and globally. TV and OTT sponsorships guarantee your brand reaches this enormous audience, regardless of which team wins or loses. You're betting on the tournament itself, not individual team performance.
- Real-Time Engagement: Viewers watching live matches are fully engaged—they're not scrolling through their phones or skipping ads. When your brand sponsors a "Super Six" moment or the strategic timeout, you're catching people at their most attentive. That's when brand messages stick.
- Content Integration, Not Interruption: Traditional ads interrupt the viewing experience. Sponsorships become part of it. When the commentator says "This strategic timeout is brought to you by [Your Brand]," you're woven into the content itself. It feels less like advertising and more like natural program flow.
- Flexibility Across Formats: TV and OTT offer different flavors of engagement. TV provides broad reach and family viewing moments. OTT platforms let you target specific viewer segments, create interactive experiences, and track engagement metrics more precisely. You can choose one or combine both for maximum impact.
- Premium Brand Positioning: Sponsoring broadcast segments positions your brand at a premium level. You're not just another advertiser—you're a broadcast partner. This elevates brand perception and creates associations with quality entertainment and professional sports coverage.
- Moment Marketing Opportunities: The beauty of broadcast sponsorships is you can own specific moments that align with your brand. A beverage company sponsoring drink breaks, a financial services brand owning the "Power Player of the Match," or a tech company sponsoring the "Super Over"—these create natural, memorable brand associations.
- No Long-Term Commitment Required: You can sponsor tournament phases or the entire season based on your budget and marketing calendar. This makes it easier to test the waters or align with specific business objectives.
- Second-Screen Integration: Many viewers watch matches while simultaneously engaging with in-app activities. OTT sponsorships can create seamless experiences across both screens, driving viewers from the match stream to your website, app, or social media channels.
- Complement Team Sponsorships: Smart brands often combine team and broadcast sponsorships. Your team partnership builds long-term affinity, while broadcast sponsorships amplify reach across all matches and fan bases. Together, they create a comprehensive IPL marketing strategy.
Central Sponsorships
Being the Title Sponsor means you're sponsoring the entire tournament. It's the highest level of partnership you can achieve with the Indian Premier League.
This usually involves a multi-year commitment with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). With extremely limited availability, title sponsorship puts your brand front and center at one of the planet's biggest sporting events.
Brands pursue IPL title sponsorship for:
- Unmatched brand visibility and recall across the country
- Leadership positioning within their industry
- Recognition on both national and international stages
- Deep integration across TV broadcasts, digital platforms, and on-ground experiences
- Building long-term brand equity that lasts well beyond the tournament
Why Choose Central Sponsorships?
Central sponsorships represent the pinnacle of IPL brand association. When you're the title sponsor or an official tournament partner, you're not just visible—you're omnipresent. Every match, every team, every moment carries your brand.
Here's why brands invest in central sponsorships:
- Unmatched Brand Visibility: Your brand appears everywhere—across all 10 teams, every stadium, all broadcast channels, digital platforms, and promotional materials. There's no escaping your presence during the IPL season, which translates to unprecedented brand recall.
- Category Leadership and Dominance: Central sponsorship instantly positions you as the market leader in your category. It's a powerful statement that tells consumers, competitors, and stakeholders that you're the biggest player in the game. This perception advantage is difficult for competitors to overcome.
- Pan-India and Global Reach: Unlike team sponsorships that may be regionally focused, central sponsorships give you access to every market where IPL has a presence. You're reaching audiences from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, and from Mumbai to the Indian diaspora worldwide.
- Long-Term Brand Equity Building: Multi-year central sponsorship deals create lasting associations between your brand and cricket's most exciting tournament. Over time, this builds deep-rooted brand equity that continues to pay dividends even after the sponsorship period ends.
- First-Mover Advantage in Marketing: As a central sponsor, you get early access to tournament schedules, creative assets, and activation opportunities. This head start allows you to plan comprehensive marketing campaigns that competitors can't match in scope or timing.
- Exclusive Rights and Protection: Central sponsorships typically come with category exclusivity, meaning your direct competitors are locked out. This protection ensures you dominate the conversation in your category throughout the tournament without competitive clutter.
- Prestige and Corporate Reputation: Being associated with one of the world's most-watched sporting events elevates your corporate image. It signals financial strength, ambition, and a commitment to excellence—valuable attributes for B2B relationships, investor confidence, and talent recruitment.
- 360-Degree Integration Opportunities: Central sponsors receive integration across every IPL touchpoint—broadcast, digital, on-ground, merchandise, and more. This comprehensive presence allows for cohesive, integrated marketing campaigns that reinforce your message from every angle.
- Media Value Multiplier: The earned media coverage from being the title sponsor or major tournament partner often exceeds the value of the sponsorship itself. News coverage, social media buzz, and public relations opportunities amplify your investment many times over.
- Stakeholder Engagement Platform: Central sponsorships provide unique opportunities to engage employees, customers, partners, and stakeholders through exclusive IPL experiences, hospitality events, and VIP access that money typically can't buy.
Conclusion
IPL sponsorship offers something for every marketing budget and objective. Its massive reach and passionate fan base make it one of the most valuable sponsorship properties in sports today.
With 14 years of hands-on experience in sports marketing and brand partnerships, Excellent Publicity helps brands navigate the high-stakes world of IPL sponsorship with clarity, strategy, and measurable impact.
From identifying the right sponsorship tier to negotiating optimal assets, we ensure brands invest wisely and align with clear business objectives.
With deep industry relationships and proven execution capability, we ensure that your IPL sponsorship is a powerful, results-driven brand movement.