In 2026, for the first time ever, the World Cup will be spread over three countries. Sixteen cities across the U.S., Canada and Mexico will host matches, giving brands and advertisers a chance to expand their reach and build connections with growing football fan bases across North America—if they know where to look.
The tide of popularity is turning for football in North America, to the benefit of sponsors and advertisers. Since 2015, the U.S. has added 10 clubs to the MLS, while Canada founded the Canadian Premier League in 2017 with eight current teams and Mexico’s Liga MX boasts some of the largest crowds of any North American league1.
This new popularity is creating hotspots of football fan bases across future host countries. In Canada, for instance, interest in football in general has increased 32.8% since the announcement that the country will host 10 2026 World Cup matches2. And according to Nielsen Scarborough, in the U.S. Houston is the 2026 World Cup host city with the most football fans per capita, followed by Los Angeles and Miami/Ft. Lauderdale.
월드컵 개최 도시에는 연고 축구 클럽이 있기 때문에 해당 지역에 팬이 집중되는 것은 당연한 현상입니다. 그러나 중요한 것은 지역 팀의 인기가 주변 지역으로 확산되어 지역 팀 또는 선수와 파트너 관계를 맺은 광고주의 영향력이 확대될 수 있다는 점입니다.
To reach these fans, advertisers are using social media sites like Twitter, TikTok and Twitch. According to Nielsen’s 2022 World Football Report, while free-to-air television is still the preferred method of viewing matches (81%) for football fans who watch sports, social media is now a go-to platform, with 72% of fans claiming they use apps to watch the action.
And when their teams do well, fans flock to social media to follow and like and engage with content. The Canadian men’s team, for example, saw a significant increase in social media content & interactions in the 2021/2022 season after qualifying for their first World Cup in 36 years. The women’s national team saw a similar increase in social media engagement when they won gold in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
닐슨 팬 인사이트에 따르면, 이번 월드컵 본선 진출은 캐나다인 전체의 축구 관심도 상승으로 이어졌으며, 응답자의 35.6%가 팀의 월드컵 본선 진출 전보다 현재 축구 관전에 더 관심이 생겼다고 답했다.
National team football fans in each host country prefer YouTube for sports news and content. While Twitch is among the lowest used by percentage, fans over index significantly on its use compared to the general population. To further expand its reach for the 2022 World Cup, Twitch is adding a live streaming component to their coverage for the first time, granting Brazilian Twitch influencer Casimiro Miguel the rights to stream matches to his millions of followers.
In addition to the notable on-screen audience exposure that sponsors receive on both live TV and social media, Nielsen’s 2021 Trust in Advertising study found that brand sponsorships in sporting events rank just behind recommendations from friends and family, as 81% of consumers reported either completely or somewhat trusting them (vs. 89% who trust recommendations). Football fans are also eager to learn more about the brands sponsoring their favorite team—56% of percent actively inform themselves about brands engaged as a sports sponsor.
But football sponsorships are more than an opportunity to increase brand awareness—they can be the key to staying top of mind with fans when it comes time to make a purchase. According to Nielsen Fan Insights, 67% of football fans think brands are more appealing when they participate in sports sponsorships, and 59% would pick a sponsor’s product over a competitor’s if price and quality are the same, compared to 45% of the general population. And Nielsen’s 2022 Global Sports Report found that the sponsorships drove an average 10% lift in purchase intent among the exposed fanbase.
2022년 월드컵이 첫 경기를 앞두고 경기장 안팎에서 승자와 패자가 결정되는 가운데, 광고주들은 브랜드 인지도와 수익에 미치는 영향과 스폰서십 비용을 비교하고 있습니다. 2026년 월드컵의 경쟁에서 앞서고 북미 지역에 일찍 진출하고자 하는 브랜드는 2022년의 모멘텀을 바탕으로 오늘의 팬을 내일의 고객으로 전환할 수 있는 캠페인을 지금부터 계획해야 합니다.
참고
- 북중미 및 카리브해 연맹 축구 협회
- 닐슨 팬 인사이트, 2022년 8월
