India's Para Athletics Championship: A Unique Marketing Opportunity For Brands

This September, India makes history as New Delhi hosts the World Para Athletics Championships from September 26 to October 5—the first time the event comes to India. This isn't just another sporting event; it's a fundamental shift in how brands can engage with one of the world's most dynamic and undervalued consumer segments. 

When India's para-athletes returned from the 2024 Paralympics with 29 medals—their best-ever performance—brands rushed to create the usual "overcoming adversity" narratives. They missed the crucial insight: para sports isn't a charity case requiring inspirational packaging. It's high-performance sporting spectacle with a massive, affluent, and engaged global audience. 

The economic reality challenges every outdated assumption. With 1.3 billion people globally living with significant disabilities and their allies controlling over $13 trillion in disposable income, this isn't a niche market—it's a mainstream economic force that's been systematically overlooked. 

Shifting the Narrative: The Role of Media and Brands 

How we cover para sports really matters. Media and brands need to move past the "inspiration only" stories and start highlighting the skill, dedication, and competitive fire of para-athletes. Stories that genuinely connect with people can completely change how we see and follow para sports. 

Brands have a huge part to play in this shift. Toru Jhaveri, founder of The Stuff Of Life, puts it perfectly: "We need to build narratives around the resilience of these athletes and how they’ve overcome tremendous odds to compete at the highest level. India’s Paralympians brought home more medals than their Olympic counterparts, and that’s a story that deserves more attention,". Real leadership means bringing para-athletes into brand stories regularly—showing their journeys beyond just the medals and celebrating their athletic excellence. Here how brands can make it possible -  

Authentic Storytelling Builds Trust 

Take Tanishq's Mia campaign, "Dekhna hai to khel dekho," featuring Para Archer Sheetal Devi. This campaign breaks stereotypes beautifully by showing her confidence and resilience, getting audiences to see athletes beyond their disabilities. Authentic storytelling like this does way more than raise awareness; it creates real emotional connections between brands and consumers. 

Supporting Grassroots Creates Long-Term Impact 

Krafton India's partnership with the Paralympic Committee of India (PCI) to provide training kits, bags, and caps for para-athletes heading to the Paris Paralympics shows how brand involvement at the grassroots level nurtures talent and builds genuine goodwill. When you invest in support systems directly, you boost performance and create lasting loyalty.  

Comprehensive Support Elevates Performance

Hyundai India’s ‘Samarth’ CSR initiative pledges support to 20 para-athletes across eight sports for three years. Alongside financial backing, Hyundai provides expert coaching, mentorship, and assistive devices. Their commitment extends to improving accessibility—nearly 98% of Hyundai showrooms have been upgraded for wheelchair users, and specially designed swivel seats are now available in many of their vehicles, enhancing mobility.  

Why 2025 is the Time to Engage with Para Sports 

The 2025 World Para Athletics Championships at Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium is a landmark moment. This event will also make para sports “more visible and accessible to everyone.” For brands, this is more than an event; it is a chance to join a movement early, building lasting relationships with a passionate and growing audience. 

Early involvement brings benefits—not just in visibility, but in aligning with values of inclusivity, perseverance, and excellence that resonate deeply with today's consumers. 

Para sports represent equal opportunity in action. With India emerging as a global leader and hosting a historic event, the platform is set for para-athletics to become a core part of Indian sports and culture. 

Smart brands will use the championships to demonstrate genuine commitment to accessibility rather than performative inclusion. This means showcasing universal design, highlighting workforce diversity, and proving that accessibility drives innovation rather than constraining it. 

The journey toward inclusivity, respect, and exciting brand connections begins now. Will your brand lead or follow? Zupotsu is here to help brands step confidently into this space, connecting them with authentic opportunities to market themselves at the World Paralympics Games in Delhi this year. The question to ask is not if you should join, but how quickly. 

Zupotsu is a martech platform on a mission to ‘digitize’ sports marketing. Zupotsu enables the discovery, engagement, and evaluation (the ‘DEE’ framework) for every sports and esports marketing asset. Please sign up at www.zupotsu.com. Follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram. Reach out at ‘marketing@zupotsu.com’ for any queries.