MAM
McCann Pulse study finds football fans behaviour radically affected by World Cup
Celebrations full of colour, business at a standstill, sales of the most varied products soaring. These and more are just some of the effects the ongoing Fifa World Cup has among crazed fans across the world, according to McCann Pulse, the consumer insight network of McCann-Erickson WorldGroup, that has been observing the viewing rituals of World Cup fans during the past two weeks.
The aim of the study is to uncover the impact that the sometimes odd fan behavior has on media, local businesses and the daily lives of consumers around the world. The study covered 24 countries.
The following are some of the McCann Pulse observations of World Cup viewing rituals:
1. Closed for Business: For fans in traditional soccer markets, the World Cup brings normal daily routines to a screeching halt, causing schools and businesses to open late so employees and customers can watch the early morning soccer matches. In Brazil, for example, banks, government offices and most private companies start operating after 12 noon on days when the Brazilian team plays a match
2. Sales Boom for Pajamas and Cigarettes: Despite the potential drain on worker productivity, McCann Pulse is finding that the World Cup is not all bad for businesses. In Turkey, for example, some consumers are complaining that because the stress of watching the World Cup is making fans smoke more, it is nearly impossible to find cigarettes in grocery stores on the day of Turkish World Cup matches. And in Brazil, where games air in the early morning hours, local consumers cite buying more breakfast food than usual, and sales of pajamas appear to be up.
3 Cooking Tips and Beauty Pageants : McCann Pulse is finding that the impact of World Cup fever reaches far beyond the traditional soccer fan base. In an effort to widen and hold the World Cup television audience, a variety show in Hong Kong that airs between matches offers unconventional features, such as cooking tips, in addition to the usual pre-game and post-game analysis. And in Thailand, a TV programme aired a beauty contest during the World Cup related to the local tournament festivities.
4. E-Mail Commentary: When not in front of a television set, World Cup fans have been relying on electronic communications to keep track of and discuss the match results. In South Korea, many teenagers watching a match in person are keeping up to date on the status of other games by using real time text service on their mobile phones. In America where many fans lacked the crowds of viewing companions found in other markets, viewers are using post-game e-mail messages and e-group commentaries to virtually share opinion about the most recent tournament developments with other physically remote fans.
5. ‘Colourful’ Celebrations: For fans in victorious countries, public celebrations are animated and colourful. In Korea, fans literally painted the town red when their team advanced to the second round of play. Turkish fans are decorating their apartments with red and white light bulbs in honour of the Turkish team colours. In Thailand, a mock World Cup is being held among prison inmates.
In India however, where cricket takes pride of place the situation is quite different. Such outpourings are restricted to what can well be termed a niche audience. Football is yet to find a grounding in the country despite fellow Asian South Korea managing to reach the semi finals. Unlike Brazil where the masses are fanatical about the sport in India the game is followed by a niche Indian society.
This explains why marketeers have concentrated football-related promotions in select regions of the country. Its main followers are in West Bengal, Goa and Kerala. Indians however are more aware of the international football scenario rather than their domestic league. A major stumbling block marketers face is that not one football player commands celebrity status and worship anywhere remotely close to Indian cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar.
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
