Coca-Cola, Adidas, Unilever, AB InBev and Home Depot reaped the benefits of official partnerships with the global tournament via a variety of marketing approaches.

With 104 games across three host countries, the 2026 World Cup was the soccer tournament’s largest iteration ever, and possibly the biggest sporting event of all time. The event, held June 11 – July 19, broke and rebroke records for soccer viewership in the U.S. — great news for the advertisers who spent a combined $1.42 billion on media within game time across the full tournament, according to MediaRadar data.

In the run-up to the World Cup, marketers spanning alcohol, beverage, snacks and retail categories — both with and without official FIFA sponsorships — rolled out campaigns, some starting as early as January, that looked to engage consumers around the unprecedented excitement. 

The results of these efforts have started to come into focus in recent comments by executives during calls with analysts to discuss broader financial performance. The full impact isn’t likely to be known until the fall when companies report Q3 earnings, since the tournament ran across both the second and third quarters, with most World Cup marketers hoping to reap the benefits for a long time.

How 5 brands won World Cup gold through marketing investments | Marketing Dive