Game 5 of the Knicks-Spurs series pulled 24.5 million viewers, the biggest NBA Finals audience since 1998. With a 53-year title drought and a city losing its mind, it was a headline built for marketing teams to grab onto.
But think about this - the US Men’s opener against Paraguay also pulled ~25 million US viewers. A single World Cup group-stage game matched the biggest NBA Finals night in nearly three decades. And the tournament is just getting started - viewership climbs as the knockout rounds approach.
So, quick gut check: did your brand send a text about the World Cup? Probably not. In bottom-of-the-funnel channels, brand participation has been lousy, and the gap is about cultural fluency. American marketers know basketball. We don't know soccer, and it shows.
What’s Ahead:
The brand I wanted more from
What good looks like
Who is watching the World Cup anyway? Gen Z is
A few opportunities for job hunters
A surprising miss: BOSS
Most US brands were totally quiet when it came to the World Cup. And the texts that came in, fell flat. They acknowledged some sort of event is going on, but didn’t show any kind of fandom.
One brand I wanted to see lean in here was BOSS, which is actually the official businesswear provider for the USMNT, dressing the players and Coach Pochettino off the field. So BOSS spent partnership dollars, produced slick assets, and created a loyalty token around the tournament. But on SMS they barely said a peep. On June 11, they messaged that fans have "a chance to win a personalized USMNT video” (This is an epic prize for a real fan, but it’s hard to tell from this text). I wanted reactions to the opening match; I want players named. Hell they effectively sponsor 17 players in the tournament! I want more!
Say more BOSS!
Taste Salud showed up
The best World Cup related SMS messages in the Tiny Texts universe came from Taste Salud, a California-based drink mix inspired by Mexican aguas frescas. Taste Salud built an actual sequence — a new flavor launched in partnership with the Mexican National Team, a limited-edition jersey bundle with real scarcity, and a personal text from the founder explaining why the collab mattered to him. There is energy, excitement, and you can be sure Taste Salud will continue to message around the tournament. Keep track of all of Taste Salud’s sends, tracked at tinytexts.co.
Aside from Taste Salud, I’m coming up short when looking for great World Cup SMS campaigns. The closest thing I can offer is Lays’ Whatsapp activation, the Epic Watch Party, which offers fans an opportunity to react to the game and interact with A-list talent. It’s an example of how a brand is using a similar channel to authentically embrace fans.
Get in the game
The World Cup schedule runs for another month, and the audience is only going to grow. While about a third of Americans are expected to watch, two groups are showing up in bigger proportions: more than half of Hispanic and Asian consumers in the US plan to watch. Younger US consumers are much more interested also, e.g., 40% of US Gen Z consumers plan to watch. If your SMS list overlaps with these demos, you have a real opening here.
Job opportunities from the Tiny Texts community
If you are recruiting for a new role, please let me know! I’ll post and share with Tiny Texts readers. And if you are searching for a new role, here are 3 recent opportunities:
QVC is hiring a Senior Retention Manager
Little Sleepies is hiring a Senior Manager, Lifecycle
Michaels Stores is looking for a Manager of Targeted Marketing
Want more benchmarks, insights and job posts? Follow Tiny Texts on LinkedIn
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Thanks for reading and see you next week!
