Óscar Hernández
9 jul 2026 – 05:00
The World Cup is in its final stretch. Of the 48 teams that began the competition, only eight remain. While it remains to be seen which team will lift the trophy, even before the opening whistle, there was already one winner: FIFA. FIFA President Gianni Infantino has introduced several new features in this edition aimed at the product and the companies sponsoring the competition. There is more space for advertising and greater international exposure than ever before in this centennial tournament.
Elvis Santos, a marketing and communications expert at Ogilvy, analyzes—from an advertising perspective—the new hydration breaks, the participation of 48 national teams, and the influence of fashion companies on the world’s most-watched sporting event, which has even spilled over into the realm of popular culture. With more than 25 years of experience in the industry, Santos began his career in various media outlets before moving into corporate communications. After 17 years, in 2023, he began a new chapter at Ogilvy Spain.
Question: The World Cup in the U.S. is the most business-oriented in history:Has FIFA’s approach been the right one by adding more countries and introducing the controversial hydration break?
Answer: You have to separate two things: whether you’re looking at it from the fan’s perspective or from the perspective of businesses. If I could split my position, the Elvis fan would say that modern soccer is killing tradition, while the professional Elvis would argue that hydration breaks create a sales opportunity that didn’t exist before in a high-viewership event. Moreover, these are contextual opportunities. In other words, advertising is right on the field and is organically integrated into the sporting experience—as seen, for example, when players hydrate with Powerade. And although FIFA claims this is done for medical reasons, the brands entering this new advertising space are chosen with great care. In many of the matches, the temperature doesn’t exceed 23 degrees since the stadiums are climate-controlled. However, the organization has opened up a commercial space full of possibilities, which I think is very smart on their part. FIFA today has the most commercialized approach we’ve ever seen.
“The brands entering this new advertising space are chosen with special care”
Q: Do brands like Nike, Adidas, or Puma benefit from the competition being extended, or does having more games dilute viewers’ attention?
A.: Starting with the number of teams, that alone clearly demonstrates the commercialism involved. I mean, you don’t add more teams to make the competition more inclusive—because no one is naive enough to believe that anymore. You’re adding more teams because it’s a bigger business. There are more matches, and more tournaments, which in turn attract more sponsors. Brands are thrilled because it means more prime-time airtime during which they can showcase players wearing their logos. For them, this is a perfect scenario, because they pay to sponsor a player regardless of whether he has a good World Cup or not.
Q: Nike, Adidas, and Puma outfit 37 of the 48 national teams. Among these are the top contenders: what role does reaching the later stages—or even winning—the World Cup play?
A.: It means you’ve had more opportunities for your product to be seen. In every match, the exposure for your product multiplies; therefore, advancing through the different stages means your logo has been seen by an audience of millions. Added to this are television coverage, photo features, articles… When a country achieves sporting success, people develop a desire to buy their national team’s jersey, whether as a memento or to celebrate. People from other countries can also connect with that nation’s story—one that would otherwise be foreign to them—as is the case with Spain’s alternate jersey (Adidas), which is flying off the shelves. People buy it because they love it. Becoming a champion is a dream come true for all the companies that outfit national teams. Being a champion gives you a certain legitimacy as the technical brand that sponsors the winning team. From there, you can build a specific campaign and gain even more legitimacy.
“Winning a championship is a dream for every company that outfits national teams”
Q: The Spanish company Kelme is sponsoring two national teams in this World Cup: as a company that isn’t as big as giants like Nike and Adidas, what benefits does it gain from participating in the World Cup?
A.: Normally, when you sponsor a country, you’re focusing on that specific market. In other words, you’re thinking about that sponsorship and the growth of your brand in that particular market, and, along the way, you gain visibility by showcasing your product in such a prestigious competition. When you sponsor something, you don’t do it thinking about how you’re going to get global exposure; rather, you focus above all on what you’ll achieve by activating that specific sponsorship. Anything beyond that is a bonus, but in general, sponsorship is based on what you specifically achieve in that market and with that national team.
Q: Are brands hesitant to be associated with the negative aspects surrounding soccer, whether it’s racism or homophobia?
A.: Soccer is the quintessential universal sport. Wherever there’s a ball, in any country in the world, you’ll find the language of soccer. I have a ten-year-old son who’s learning about different countries, and we’re looking at maps—just through the Panini sticker collection, which is a wonderful thing. Or many of us have come to know the capitals of Europe thanks to UEFA tournaments—where Tallinn is, for example, or Bucharest… Many people have come to know the world through soccer. Indeed, on the negative side of soccer—as is practically the case in all areas of life—there will always be negative images. However, brands shouldn’t dictate how someone reacts—in this case, to an event of this nature. That’s why I believe soccer will continue to be a perfect arena for brands.
Q: Is soccer shifting toward a more exclusive and less popular environment?
A.: The commercialization of soccer has always been on the rise, and so far, it hasn’t killed the goose that lays the golden eggs; quite the opposite—it’s making the sport increasingly well-known, more popular, and more widely followed… Today, it’s true that more attention is paid to television audiences than to stadium audiences—not just at FIFA, but even within the Professional Soccer League itself, which schedules matches for 2:00 p.m. with international viewers in mind
Q: How do the worlds of culture and sports intersect?
A.:Soccer has broken out of the exclusive realm of sports to become part of popular culture. It always has been, and it’s becoming more so all the time. Brands are also beginning to differentiate—or have long differentiated— between their sports and lifestyle divisions, because soccer has broken through the boundaries of sports to become part of culture. Today, many people wear soccer jerseys every day
