The football World Cup kicks off today and while there are 48 countries vying for success on the pitch, off the pitch their commercial partners are also looking to win big – with many payments-focused players among this year’s sponsors.
While every country in the tournament has some form of sponsorship, not all have one related to payments. Our analysis shows that 88% of countries in the competition have at least one sponsor that is either a bank, a fintech or another form of non-bank player with a payments-related offering.
What is notable, however, is the dominance of banks among these sponsors. In other football settings, such as the English Premier League, fintechs often lead payments-related sponsorships. However, in the World Cup 83% of the countries with a payments-related sponsorship are sponsored by a bank. By contrast, just 29% are sponsored by a non-bank, with banks making up 75% of the payments-related brands sponsoring specific countries in the event.
While most brands opt to sponsor only one country, there are some exceptions, all of which are region-focused. Chase, for example, sponsors both England and Scotland, as well as the UK’s other Home Nations teams, Northern Ireland and Wales, neither of which qualified for this year’s event. ING, meanwhile, sponsors the bordering countries of the Netherlands and Belgium, while Visa sponsors Canada and the US – two of the three host countries along with Mexico – as well as being a key sponsor for the event overall. Raiffeisen is the only sponsor to partner with two countries that do not border each other, in Austria and Bosnia and Herzegovina.
While bank partnerships often see dominant banks in each country sponsor their national team, fintech partnerships can vary in focus. dLocal’s alliance with Uruguay is a reflection of its headquarters and origin, and formed a strong part of its messaging at its Money20/20 Europe stand last week. By contrast, Corpay’s sponsorship of New Zealand reflects a broader focus on football sponsorship, with the company partnering with multiple domestic teams in different commercially relevant markets.
Ant International’s sponsorship of Argentina, meanwhile, sees the company become an official sponsor for the Asia region in a deal that includes its brands Alipay+, Antom, Bettr and WorldFirst. Argentina is notable for the sheer number of sponsors it has as a team, with both the most focusing on payments and the most overall, and has region-specific partners that include bank Supervielle, as well as global sponsors including American Express.
