2026 World Cup Nears, Chinese Sponsorship Plunges 70%

(Central News Agency, Taipei, June 11) With the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico about to kick off, the enthusiasm of Chinese companies, once the 'biggest sponsors,' for this edition has cooled significantly. Only three Chinese sponsors remain, with a total investment of approximately $350 million, a 70% decrease from the $1.395 billion spent on the previous Qatar World Cup.

According to a report by Hong Kong's Sing Tao Daily on Tuesday, FIFA has a four-tier sponsorship system: Partners (top tier), Specialty Sponsors (second tier), Official Sponsors (third tier), and Event Supporters (fourth tier). The partnership fee for the top tier is approximately $150 million to $200 million. Chinese companies Lenovo and Wanda (which later withdrew) were in this tier, alongside global first-tier brands like Adidas and Coca-Cola. The specific list for the second-tier sponsors has not been disclosed. The investment scale for third-tier sponsors is between $65 million and $95 million. Chinese companies Hisense and Mengniu are in this tier, with sponsorship fees comparable to McDonald's.

According to the initial cooperation plan, four Chinese companies were to invest over $500 million in total. However, because Wanda failed to pay its sponsorship fees on time, FIFA suspended its rights, and it ultimately withdrew from the sponsorship ranks. The actual sponsorship amount from the remaining three Chinese companies may be only $350 million.

The report notes that Chinese companies were the 'biggest sponsors' for two consecutive World Cups. For the 2018 Russia World Cup, seven Chinese companies sponsored a total of about $835 million, making China the world's largest source of sponsorship for the first time. For the 2022 Qatar World Cup, Chinese corporate sponsorship reached a peak of $1.395 billion, with sponsors including Wanda, Hisense, Mengniu, vivo, Yadea, and BOSS Zhipin (a recruitment website).

The report cites analysis that the sharp decline in Chinese corporate sponsorship enthusiasm for this edition is mainly related to corporate operational pressures. Solar energy company Yingli sponsored two World Cups but was unable to continue due to poor performance. Wanda, caught in a financial crisis after its real estate bubble burst, withdrew from the top-tier sponsorship camp.

Furthermore, about 70% of the matches for this tournament will be broadcast between midnight and early morning in China, leading to estimated low viewership, which further weakens corporate sponsorship willingness.

At the same time, the analysis indicates that the overseas marketing model for Chinese companies has also changed. Chinese brands first appeared at the World Cup in 2010, when Yingli invested $80 million to debut the four Chinese characters '中国英利' (China Yingli) at the South Africa World Cup. It was the first time in over 80 years of the World Cup that Chinese characters appeared. Now, Chinese companies prefer digital marketing that precisely targets customer groups for their overseas marketing. In comparison, traditional World Cup advertising has a broad audience and high costs, and its cost-performance ratio has become clearly insufficient. (Editor: Zhou Huiying / Qiu Guoqiang) 1150611