Is it fútbol or soccer? While most of the world prefers the former, with the Men’s World Cup coming to the Americas in 2026, there might be an argument for calling it soccer. Two of the three country hosts, in the United States and Canada prefer soccer, while Mexico prefers fútbol. With the action a little less than a year away, here at LG Ad Solutions, we wanted to use our proprietary Automatic Content Recognition (ACR) technology to better understand the American soccer fan, and what it means for advertisers looking to capitalize on the Beautiful Game.
Understand League Preferences
Despite America having its own men’s professional league, more Americans tend to watch the English-based Premier League over Major League Soccer.
However, an advertiser simply targeting viewers of the most watched Premier League would be leaving opportunities on the pitch. More specifically, while about 14% of American soccer fans watch both leagues, more than 4 in 5, only watch a single league. To maximize their advertising efforts, brands need to use a data-driven targeting strategy.
So how can advertisers get ready for the 2026 Men’s World Cup?
Capitalize on Host Nations while expanding to Other Teams
While Americans were 3x more likely to watch the US Men’s National Team relative to other countries, strong Premier League viewership in 2024 suggests that Americans are open to other leagues’/countries’ soccer. To some extent, fans of specific leagues may follow their favorite players to see how they perform for their national teams. And, much like the Olympics, some fans may root for additional countries based on heritage, shared language, or even recent travel.
Strategically Segment Soccer Fans
Let’s face it. There are some casual American soccer fans who only think about soccer every 2-4 years during World Cups and the Olympics (or as Trent Crimm asks in Ted Lasso “could you explain the offside rule?”). However, advertisers can use ACR to understand which households have and have not watched soccer before the World Cup and tailor their message appropriately.
Ready to maximize your advertising efforts? Contact us to learn more!