Maruti Udyog Ltd [Get Quote] surpassed Coca-Cola, Pepsi and Hindustan Lever [Get Quote] to emerge as the country's largest sports advertiser on television in 2006.

The automobile major has maintained its leadership position in the current year as well.

In 2006, MUL aired 4,12,000 seconds of television commercials during sports events, Nokia occupied the second position at 291,000 seconds and Coca-Cola India was a distant third with 250,000 seconds. HLL was seventh with 170,000 seconds, according to the AdEX India, a division of Tam Media.

However, in the January-May period of the current year, Coca-Cola India has replaced Nokia at the no 2 slot with 170,000 seconds. HLL slipped down to the tenth position with only 83,000 seconds and Pepsi has dropped from five to eight in the list of top ten advertisers this year.

Maruti still leads by a distance, having clocked 226,000 seconds so far in the current year.

The drop in secondage consumption by major advertisers such as HLL and Pepsi indicates that they are evaluating their sports advertising mix, according to a Mumbai-based media buyer.

Media analysts believe that companies spending all their sports budgets on cricket are likely to shift to other sports such as football, tennis and golf. "The reason companies spent heavily on cricket was because of its reach and mass appeal. However, this situation is changing now following the Indian cricket team's World Cup debacle," said Roland Landers, CEO, PDM Sports.

Industry experts said the ad spends on cricket after the ICC World Cup 2007 have dropped around 20 per cent. Consequently, the ad spends on other sports have increased marginally. Experts believe the shift is a fundamental change and cricket may not bounce back to be the advertisers' dream event any longer.

Others fear that sports advertising may increasingly shift from television to the field. Anirban Das Blah, vice president, Globosport India, said, "Advertisers have realised that cricket is a static medium, while other sports provide for much more opportunities for ground activity."

Meanwhile, sports advertisers are turning bullish about on-ground advertising. For instance, DLF is said to spend around Rs 2-3 crore (Rs 2030 million) a match for on-ground communication.

Kingfisher Airlines is other major spender. The airline company spends over Rs 25 crore (Rs 250 million) every year across sports for on-ground advertisements. ITC and Apollo Tyres [Get Quote] are also actively pursuing sports sponsorships.