Verizon’s Nick Kelly recently announced it will sponsor the 2026 Fifa Men’s World Cup in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico and the 2027 Fifa Women’s World Cup (Brazil). This is the first time Verizon has made a significant investment in the global soccer championship, proving that brands in the U.S. are increasingly investing in soccer. Portada interviewed Nick Kelly, Verizon’s Vice President of Partnerships, to understand his approach to this significant sponsorship and overall soccer marketing strategy.
Nick Kelly: Verizon, Valuing the Fifa World Cup Opportunity
When asked how he values and approaches the soccer World Cup opportunity versus other Verizon investments like the NFL, Kelly answers that he sees two buckets when approaching the World Cup opportunity. “The first is that FIFA needs to upgrade network connectivity, and we can help FIFA make 2026 the most connected event ever. This gives us an authentic role in this relationship. We ensured they could connect in the stadium and share the match with friends and family worldwide. The level of connectivity in an NFL stadium is far greater than in traditional soccer stadiums elsewhere in the world. This allows us to show off the network.”
“The level of connectivity in an NFL stadium is far greater than in traditional soccer stadiums elsewhere in the world.”
The second bucket Kelly looks at is how the FIFA World Cup sponsorships fit into Verizon’s overall marketing strategy. For many GenZ and Hispanics, their number one sport and passion “is and remains soccer. So this is about delivering the content and passion point they care about the most.” Finally, Verizon will also give away thousands of tickets to core customers through its Access experiences, which the telco giant profoundly cares about.” This access Verizon also provides its customers in the upcoming Super Bowl this weekend, which is a core pillar of customer experience at the venue or home. The sponsorships enable Verizon to facilitate meetings between soccer players and fans at the soccer World Cups.
The Role of Hispanics and GenZ in Verizon’s Overall Soccer Marketing Strategy
Kelly asserts that Verizon’s soccer strategy goes beyond the Hispanic demographic. “Soccer is the youngest-skewing sport from a demographic standpoint. It’s a broader audience, particularly in urban markets like New York City, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., San Francisco, and Portland, Oregon. Soccer belongs to the top two or three favorite sports of the Genz demo. These audiences watch early Sunday morning soccer. That is why soccer has to be a substantial part of a young adult and Hispanic strategy.”
Within the Hispanic demographic, how different nationalities of Hispanic Americans and other segments will be engaged during the soccer World Cup is also an important reason why Verizon has selected the Fifa men’s and women’s World Cup as a key property to sponsor. Kelly explains that through the FIFA World Cup sponsorships, “we encompass everybody.” By sponsoring the Fifa World Cups, Verizon is not picking sides as it would through Liga MX or European team sponsorships: “We are just celebrating and engaging,” Kelly asserts.
Verizon also supports MLS clubs in several urban markets, including the New York City FC, Orlando City SC, and the Houston Dynamo FC. Asked for the rationale of these sponsorships, Kelly says that most of Houston Dynamo’s fan base is Hispanic: “The core fan base is significant, as it makes messaging and marketing to them a lot easier than just talking to a smaller part of their fan base.” New York City and Orlando have a similar fan demographic. Interestingly, these MLS team sponsorships are mostly a Hispanic bet: “When the Latino demo skews closer to the majority, the messaging is much easier,” he says, adding that for Hispanics, their MLS team is their second or third favorite team, behind European and/or South American team. “But because they love soccer so much, they can have multiple teams,” he concludes.
“Our soccer strategy goes beyond Hispanic. Soccer is the youngest-skewing sport from a demographic standpoint. Soccer is among the top two or three favorite sports of the Genz demo.”
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Verizon’s Sports Partnership Portfolio
Verizon’s sports partnership portfolio is among the largest and most diverse in the industry. It includes investments in football, hockey, soccer, baseball, basketball, motorsports, and key venue partnerships. Verizon’s leading agency partners are Momentum Worldwide for experiential and Zenith (part of Publicis) for media.
