Four years ago, a total of 3.2 billion people around the world watched the World Cup. That made it the most watched TV event of the 21st century to date, dwarfing all previous records. This summer’s tournament in Russia is projected to reach around 3.5 million people, setting a new precedent not just for football, but for sport in general.
With that audience comes opportunity for brands. Opportunity to make money. Over the next few weeks and months, we as football fans will be bombarded with endorsed products and promotions designed to exploit the excitement felt by so many once every four years. It’s cynical, but it all feeds into the machine FIFA have cultivated over the past few decades.
Kit launches, sticker albums, endorsements, adverts for new TVs and BBQs, shampoo adverts featuring England goalkeepers… the World Cup is no longer just about the football. It has become a true commercial event over the years. The tournament might last a month, but it is now comparable to the Super Bowl, a sporting event that is now as much about the commercial opportunities as it is about the sport.
According to statistics from YouTube, more than 1.2 billion minutes of World Cup related adverts were watched back in 2014, more than four times as many minutes as people spent watching Super Bowl adverts the very same year. Eight of the top 10 adverts over the summer featured football players, including Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Suarez and Landon Donovan.
The desire, the near misses and Messi.
For me this ad epitomises why Argentina is THE story of the World Cup - get pumped guys, it's only round the corner now...
Brands are eager to associate themselves with the World Cup because of the romanticism attached. There’s a feel good factor to the tournament that transcends sport. Football fans aren’t the only ones who watch the World Cup. It is a truly mainstream spectacle that makes headlines around the world. It’s no wonder brands are so quick to jump on the bandwagon.
Not so long ago, it was speculated that FIFA could be hit in the pocket following the scandal and controversy that engulfed the organisation at the top level. But while FIFA might still be something of a toxic brand, the World Cup is anything but. The tournament has somehow managed to detach itself from the reputation of its own organisers.
Indeed, the World Cup boasts official sponsorship deals with global brands like Coca-Cola, Adidas, Visa and Hyundai. The 1994 tournament, held in the United States, proved to be a watershed for the World Cup in commercial terms, with the event growing with every iteration ever since. This summer's will be the biggest yet. Prepare to have adverts for TVs and BBQs rammed down your throat. At least Joe Hart won’t be selling you shampoo this time.
