The teams have qualified, the groups are set, and the countdown to the 2022 FIFA World Cup continues. Over the next six months, many brands and marketers will brainstorm ways to leverage the power of the tournament and reach both ardent and casual fans through the sport of soccer.
As the planning continues, there’s one important question to be answered – who actually watches the World Cup? We dug into our research to help illustrate who the average World Cup fan is in the United States and who brands and marketers should look to target in the first-ever winter World Cup.
Who are World Cup fans?
It probably won’t surprise you that half of World Cup fans are Millennials. According to our research, the average age of fans is a shade under 35 years old. Given this, you may also not be surprised that, on average, World Cup fans have been fans for 12 years.
If you rewind the clock, that takes us back through three World Cup cycles to the 2010 tournament when the U.S. team captured the attention of the nation by tying England and winning Group C. Coincidentally, the U.S. will again face England at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Check out additional insights below as you think about focusing your marketing efforts toward World Cup fans and viewers. Want more insights into the World Cup and World Cup fandom? Shoot us an email at contact@giltedgesoccer.com!
Additional World Cup fandom insights
We know who the average viewer of the tournament is, now, what are some of their thoughts on the tournament itself? Here are additional insights.
Favorite things about the World Cup
Fans told us their three favorite things about the tournament are watching the world’s best teams, watching the world’s best players, and cheering on their favorite country.
Tuning into the tournament
Over a third of fans will watch roughly 75% of the World Cup and 90% will watch half of all games. The average fan will watch roughly 45 games during the tournament.
Taking off of work
With early and late-morning kick-off times for the 2022 FIFA World Cup and games around the holidays, taking the day off to watch games is perhaps less likely than prior tournaments. Ahead of the 2018 tournament in Russia, however, 89% of fans said there’s no shame in taking off of work to watch the World Cup. On average, fans said they would look to take off 2.5 days for tournament viewing in 2018.
Viewing while at work
In 2018, a quarter of fans told us they’d rely on apps like ESPN or Fotmob for updates during the work day, while 23% of fans couldn’t miss a second of action and streamed games while working. With more people working from home ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, expect the number of people streaming while working to increase.
24% of fans said they were likely to turn to social media to keep up-to-date with scores and updates while working. The most popular apps? Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
Club or country?
Would you rather see your country win the World Cup or see your favorite professional club team win their league? The overwhelming answer is the former, with 82% of fans saying their country’s success is more important.
Want more insights into the World Cup and World Cup fandom? Shoot us an email at contact@giltedgesoccer.com!