Thirty-two years of waiting ends today as the biggest stage in sports finally returns to North America for the first time since 1994. With more eyes on it than the Olympics, the Super Bowl, or really any other sporting event you can think of, the FIFA Men’s World Cup kicks off with Mexico taking on South Africa, beginning a frenzied month of soccer at venues across the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
As with most major sporting events, the branding opportunities are immense. But they won’t just be relegated to television broadcasts and stadiums. Packaging will also take on a World Cup flair for the sporting event of the summer, with FIFA sponsor organizations taking the lead. Here are a few examples of how the World Cup will be gracing product packaging in 2026.
Coca-Cola
Sports fans, of course, are known collectors, so any opportunity to infuse elements of card collecting into packaging is likely to be a hit. Coca-Cola announced in March that it would partner with Panini America, FIFA’s official trading card and sticker partner, on an initiative to incorporate stickers featuring 12 of the biggest global soccer stars onto Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar 20 oz. bottle labels. The sticker is revealed by peeling back the bottle labels, adding an element of surprise to each purchase.
Read the rest of this story on Packaging Impressions, a publication of PRINTING United Alliance, ASI’s strategic partner.
