Disney Star’s festive offer for brands: pocket-friendly PKL and W-T20 World Cup to target women

Kingshuk Mitra, head- ad sales, sports, Disney Star, and Dhruv Dhawan, head of ads, Disney+ Hotstar, share the network’s strategy for the upcoming sporting properties.

From the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 to a number of bilateral series, in the last year advertisers had a plethora of men’s cricketing tournaments to choose from to reach its target audience. However, for brands that stayed away because of the clutter or the high-costs, Disney Star now has two major sporting properties to offer in the festive season- Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) and ICC Women’s T20 World Cup. These properties also attract a significant (45%) female viewership. 

Starting from October 18, PKL is in its 11th season now. It is said to be the most-watched sporting league in the country after the Indian Premier League (IPL). Kingshuk Mitra, head- ad sales, sports, Disney Star, says the sporting league’s reach is about 70% of the IPL. It also brings in a unique audience—adding a 30-35% incremental audience over and above cricket, which is a net new consumer base for brands.

“This time, our go-to-market strategy to attract advertisers is positioning PKL against cricket, emphasising its comparable stature in terms of size and brand impact,” he says. 

The network is integrating its television and digital packages for a more targeted market approach, along with flexible pricing to attract new clients. 

The network has also adopted a more diverse creative approach this year, moving beyond the traditional "combat sport" association to include broader brand storytelling, making it relevant for a wider range of industries. 

"Brands were looking at PKL through a uni-dimensional creative lens. So clients, like cement brands, which were talking about strength, were the ones typically leveraging PKL, because it's such a perfect congruence. But this time around we have taken a lot more other nuances so that a lot of new clients can come on board,” he shares.

PKL is one of the fastest-growing sports leagues. It is said to be the second most watched sports league in India after the IPL and the 10th season reached 351 million viewers, marking a 20% growth over the previous season. Industry experts suggest that it is expected to reach 400 million viewers this year.

However, in the inaugural season (2014), the viewership was 435 million viewers. Mitra says PKL initially peaked, but then the COVID19-related restrictions caused a dip, “especially since much of the buzz around the sport is driven by on-ground engagement.”

“As restrictions have eased, PKL is bouncing back. From 2021 to the upcoming season, we’re projecting a steady growth of 60-70%,” he says.

Mitra says PKL stands out as the only nationwide property after cricket, with a reach spanning across all market tiers—urban, non-metro, and rural markets. About 56% of its viewership comes from the Hindi-speaking market (HSM) and 44% from the South. In terms of audience, PKL attracts affluent viewers, with 65% of NCCS AB households, a premium cohort, watching the league.

“Moreover, compared to other major tentpole properties, PKL delivers 2-4X the reach. Even bilateral cricket matches fall short,” he says.

In 2015, Star India acquired a 74% stake in Mashal Sports, which owns PKL. Since the league is managed directly, it provides brands flexibility, allowing a 360-degree solution that includes access to players, ground activations, and media assets.

To increase the penetration of the league, Disney Star is investing heavily in promoting PKL across its network. This includes a major Bollywood push with a prominent face for the league. For example, last year actor Tiger Shroff featured in its ads. Cross-promotion with cricket stars, like Matthew Hayden, who support PKL, and extensive on-ground activations are also part of its strategy. 

It is also launching the KBD Junior Kabaddi initiative to introduce the sport to schools and colleges, engaging the younger generation. PKL also attracts more family viewers. The network is leveraging this insight to enhance its popularity. 

Mitra says brands investing in PKL show strong consistency in returning. For example, UltraTech, a B2C cement brand, sees PKL’s ability to penetrate tier 2 and 3 markets, which are crucial for their growth. “No other platform goes as deep into rural markets,” he says. 

Another cohort of brands, like Patanjali, aligns with the sport's nationalism narrative, as Kabaddi is a homegrown sport going global. Junior Kabaddi has also attracted new clients, especially CPG brands, due to its regional pride and the emotional connection parents feel seeing their children on TV. Brands heavily invested in cricket are also joining to expand their audience base.

A large part of PKL’s viewership comes from linear television. However, the platform has witnessed a 3x increase in viewership over the last two seasons. Dhruv Dhawan, head of ads, Disney+ Hotstar, says that in Hindi-speaking markets, where the platform has room to grow, it plans to invest to tap into that potential.

“PKL has a loyal audience that extends beyond metros, with strong growth coming from cities outside the top six or eight, largely due to the reach TV has built over the years. Digital is catching up, providing a balanced mix of viewers who enjoy the sport across platforms,” he says. 

However, Mitra says, the network’s aim is not to further increase the viewership. Instead, it plans to focus on getting more premium audiences to tune into the sporting league, creating a balance between revenue and the kind of audience that clients are targeting.

“In India, clients are particularly interested in audiences that drive consumer spending,” he says.

Meanwhile, Disney Star is also preparing for the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, which is scheduled from October 3 to October 20. 

Dhawan says viewership of women’s cricket has seen a dramatic rise, with nearly 3 times more viewers tuning in for the 2023 Women’s World Cup than the previous editions on Disney+ Hotstar. 

“This growth is expected to continue, as our platform's reach and ease in accessing live sports and more engaging for users,” he says.

While the viewership is not comparable with men’s cricket, the female viewership, at 20%, is higher for women’s cricket. “Women's sports generally tends to attract more female viewers,” Dhawan says.

As a result, more brands targeting women consumers find women’s cricket an attractive property. For example, Dazller Cosmetics was the platinum sponsor for the Women’s T20 Asia Cup 2024. 

Dhawan says some key sectors like beauty, food, apparel, CPG, and automotive are expected to drive significant advertising investments, especially since the tournament coincides with the festive period.

40% of its viewers come from metros, 80% fall into the NCCS AB category, and 25% are 25 years and older. “This means we attract a more premium, engaged, and likely paying audience. We offer premium audiences at scale, setting us apart from other OTT and digital video platforms,” he adds.

For the World Cup, the streaming platform is offering advanced targeting options across thousands of cohorts, supported by cutting-edge tech innovations and strong measurement solutions to maximise ROI. It has ad formats like lead-gen ads, click-to-WhatsApp, and click-to-engage, enabling first-party data collection and stronger performance for brands. These can be integrated into various formats—mid-rolls, pre-rolls, billboards, branded cards, and tabs—allowing advertisers to enhance engagement. 

It is also offering various CTV ad options, like CTV billboards, which display when users open the platform. “While sports and the Women's Cricket World Cup are key, they are a part of a broader festive package, including entertainment properties. These formats, along with other inventory, can be packaged across both live sports and other content for advertisers,” he adds.

Additionally, it provides language-specific feeds in Hindi, English, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada, enabling regional advertisers to run targeted ads. 

However, unlike PKL, television and digital are being sold separately with distinct packages and conversations. “If an advertiser prefers a combined approach, we collaborate to create an integrated package,” he says.