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JULY 9, 2026 |
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This special edition of EMARKETER Daily is made possible by Contentful. Personalization is a winning strategy. See how AI-powered content helps brands connect with every audience segment, improve campaign performance, and stay ahead of the competition. |
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TOP STORY |
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Brands are adjusting to a different setting for this year's FIFA World Cup, as fans of the tournament, which runs through July 19, follow the action on a highly fragmented array of channels, forcing brands to come up with creative ways to engage them. |
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“Hosting the tournament in North America, specifically in the States, is pulling fans decisively off traditional broadcast and into digital and connected TV (CTV) to follow along,” said Rod Paolucci, global head of marketing at Channel Factory. |
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In addition to streaming the games on a big screen, many viewers will be checking social media and other feeds on a mobile second screen. |
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WORLD CUP 2026 |
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US-Belgium World Cup match draws record 42 million US viewers. It's the largest viewership ever for any soccer telecast in US history, per Nielsen. |
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The World Cup gives retailers and brands a rare mass-audience moment—sponsorship not required. While official sponsorships are costly, retailers, brands, and restaurants far beyond FIFA’s partner roster are finding creative ways to tap into that attention. |
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TikTok’s new standalone app turns World Cup engagement into an ad playground for brands. TikTok launched TikTok Pro—Events, a standalone app built around major cultural moments, debuting with the FIFA World Cup. |
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ANALYSIS |
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The FIFA World Cup is turning into a creator-first streaming event, with the Group Stage driving more than 1.1 billion hours of livestreaming globally, per Stream Charts. |
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YouTube dominated engagement, accounting for over 94.3% of tracked livestream viewing and pulling in over 1 billion hours alone.
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Brazil emerged as a key market with 994.7 million hours of World Cup-related livestream viewing. South Korea came in second with 42.5 million hours. |
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PODCAST |
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We discuss the scale of the World Cup, whether the World Cup will spark a surge in sports tourism, and the best ways for brands to capture fans' attention during the tournament. | | |
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