World Cup shows brands can break through without official sponsorships

The 2026 FIFA World Cup showed that brands “do not need to spend millions of dollars on becoming an official partner to garner attention,” and that could “prove to be an interesting trend as other major sporting competitions loom large,” according to Dan Sheldon of THE ATHLETIC. Adidas “won” the World Cup from a brand standpoint but the company was “not alone in leaving a commercial mark on the tournament.” Inter Miami co-owner David Beckham, Kalshi, Gillette and Levi’s “all generated noise during the World Cup.” Adidas highlighted that it “sold four times as many jerseys and twice as many balls as for the previous men’s World Cup,” with the expectation that event-related sales “will surpass” $1.7B. Many feel that Beckham, who is also an Adidas athlete and starred in its World Cup campaign video, “elevated his personal brand to a new level due to the number of commercials he appeared in.” Beckham partnered with more than 11 companies, including long-term partners Adidas and Pepsi, Bank of America, Lay’s, Home Depot, McDonald’s, Ninja Kitchen and Stella Artois. The rollouts in K.C. did “not go unnoticed either.” According to Bank of America, K.C. recorded the “largest increase in consumer spending of any U.S. host city,” while more than 400,000 people attended its fan festival. With the Women’s World Cup in Brazil taking place next June and July, followed by the 2028 L.A. Olympic and Paralympic Games, companies are “already thinking about how they can drive the conversation at those events” (THE ATHLETIC, 8/12).