The couch left Los Angeles in a mail truck, passed through Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon, stopped in Dallas and Miami, and headed towards New York along Route 66. Behind the wheel is Dean, a delivery driver whose journey was filmed as a six-week American sitcom adventure.
The shipment he is transporting is not furniture, but the central element of FIFA’s new gaming communications. The FIFA Gaming Couch was developed with the agency Jung von Matt SPORTS as a new marketing format intended to take the World Cup beyond the stadium and bring it closer to an audience whose relationship with football is built through games, streaming platforms, creators and entertainment franchises.
Instead of one major announcement, the story unfolds in episodes. Along the way, Dean finds himself in pre-planned and spontaneous situations, while figures from sports, gaming and internet culture take turns appearing on and around the couch. They include skateboarding legend Tony Hawk, former Germany international Marco Reus, Brazilian footballer and Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo, known as R9, streamer IShowSpeed, NFL player Jakob Johnson, former Canadian footballer Lauren Sesselmann and international creator brand Yes Theory.
The visual and narrative framework adopts the rhythm of American sitcoms from the 1990s, such as The King of Queens and Friends. This gives the couch the role of a mobile set where different communities come together, as well as a shared space for gaming, conversation and content production.
More than 70 creators have participated in the campaign so far, while content published across FIFA’s, its partners’ and participants’ channels has generated more than 60 million views. Netflix and Netflix Games have also been involved in the distribution and development of individual activations, while the media strategy draws on FIFA’s partnerships with TikTok and YouTube.
The journey has not remained confined to digital screens. Pop-up events were held in West Hollywood, at Netflix House in Dallas and in Miami, where visitors could try the games FIFA Heroes, FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition, Roblox, Rocket League and Football Manager. In Dallas, the sports and gaming content was connected with the series Squid Game, one of Netflix’s best-known franchises.
The final stop will be Fanatics Fest at the Javits Center in New York during the final weekend of the FIFA World Cup 2026. There, FIFA and Netflix Games will organise the Couch Cup, a FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition tournament for eight creators and performers, including actor and creator Jacob Romero and actress and singer Kiawentiio.
The campaign follows a broader shift in FIFA’s approach to digital football. After presenting its new strategy at the end of May, the organisation launched several games and integrations for different types of players throughout June.
FIFA World Cup: Launch Edition, developed by Delphi Interactive, was released on Netflix Games in mid-June. The mobile version of FIFA Heroes launched globally on 24 June, after which it reached the top of the app charts in the United Kingdom, Türkiye and Spain. PC and console versions have also been announced.
World Cup-related content was simultaneously integrated into Rocket League and Football Manager 2026, while a special event was launched with GameFam within FIFA Super Soccer on Roblox.
Jung von Matt SPORTS was responsible for IP creation, narrative, design and communications. The agency Episode1 delivered the events in Los Angeles, Dallas and Miami, while BDX Media participated in content production and creator partnerships.
