Looking at the ad performance of the sports property for the first 62 matches, TAM reported Mahindra & Mahindra to hold the top advertiser rank in CTV and the second top advertiser in linear TV.

Mahindra & Mahindra ranked as the top advertiser for FIFA World Cup 2026 in terms of ad volume on CTV while liquor major United Spirits led the linear TV segment, as per TAM Sports data.

Looking at the ad performance of the sports property for the first 62 matches, TAM reported Mahindra & Mahindra to hold the top advertiser rank in CTV and the second top advertiser in linear TV.

From a brands perspective, Mahindra Thar, Mahindra XEV and Mahindra BE took up 24 per cent of the ad volume share in CTV and 30 per cent in linear TV. The same three brands ranked among the top 5 brands both on CTV and linear TV, alongside Black & White non-alchoholic carbonated beverages and Candere (Kalyan Jewellers). These accounted for 42 per cent of volume share.

The second set of brands largely came from the liquor category, which had a 40 per cent share in total ads volume. A mix of these two categeories accounts for 69 per cent share of ad volumes on linear TV as top 5 brands.

“Liquor topped FIFA World Cup 2026 on linear TV and cars on CTV, retail outlets-jewellers maintained its 3rd place on both. In FIFA WC 2026, the top 5 categories accounted for 93 per cent of total ad volume on LTV. While Top 5 on CTV contributed only 57 per cent,” said TAM in its report.

Better performance

On a media comparison basis, CTV appears to be performing better than linear TV, reporting more advertisers from different brands and categories compared to linear TV.

Linear TV performance’s average ad volume per channel per match dropped by 14 per cent during FIFA World Cup 2026, compared to FIFA WC 2022 that was acquired by Viacom18 for $60 million at the time.

Following the announcement of Zee acquiring FIFA’s broadcasting rights, there was much talk about the monetisation value of the property. According to Lloyd Mathias, Independent Director, Angel Investor and Business Strategist, this year’s World Cup is not performing as well as previous editions, partly because of the geopolitical environment that is making brands pull back as well as the missed buildup towards the World Cup kick-off.

“The broadcaster didn’t get to market in a big way. A lot of categories are also in a down season. However, I see a significant pickup in next fortnight,” said Mathias.

As the World Cup moves in to the quarter and semi-finals, the viewership activity will increase as will the brand interest.

Similarly, Priti Murthy - President Client Solutions, WPP Media, South Asia, also told businessline that FIFA remains a high interest property for brands.

“A lot of automobiles, male-focused brands have always taken to FIFA but now also female-focused brands have shown interest and they are advertising as well. Some of the Indian or global brands also want to participate in TV advertising,” said Murthy.

Published on July 3, 2026