Source: TheDrum
FIFA World Cup 2018 which will be held in Russia this year is expected to reach as many as 3.2bn people across the globe, and as the opening day comes nearer the excitement is building not only among fans, but brands as well. Companies around the world will reportedly boost global advertising spend by $2.4bn during the event, despite the fact that some of the world’s biggest markets, like U.S. and China, are absent from the competition.
Research from Zenith found that despite great interest in the tournament in Russia, some major economies will not be going all in with their ad spend. The absent U.S., a global adspend leader, will contribute only 0.2% of total annual expenditure this year.
In the UK, the World Cup will add an extra £40m to ad expenditure in 2018. The tournament is likely to boost print sales and will carry a swelling effect for ad spend there too.
40% of the competition’s potential audience will be asleep when games are played. As a result, research noted that people will look for alternative ways to watch the games, including video on demand platforms and clips on social media – which carry their own advertising opportunities.
Host nation Russia will experience a $64m boost to ad spend, accounting for 2.1% of all Russian advertising expenditure in 2018. Meanwhile the biggest increase will come from China. It will contribute $835m in extra adspend, or 1.0% of the entire ad market in response to the World Cup!
Jonathan Barnard, Zenith’s head of forecasting and director of global intelligence, said: “The World Cup provides a reliable boost to the global ad market every four years, and will be responsible for 10% of all the growth in ad dollars this year. This year’s tournament will showcase the brand-building powers of both traditional television and social media.”
