The 2026 World Cup, a testing ground for the virtualization of sport

The ongoing World Cup has become a crucial testing ground for major social media networks aiming to virtualize and segment massive sporting events. These platforms are developing new formats and experiences specifically designed to capture the attention of younger demographics.

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Television, with its multitudinous audiences, is the medium that dominates a global event like the World Cup and that in the medium term will continue to be the case, but increasingly social media is a showcase for what happens in competitions like the World Cup.

Pavel Sidorenko, a researcher in Social Communication and New Narratives at the International University of La Rioja (UNIR), explained that while television will continue to dominate global events like the World Cup in the medium term, social media is increasingly serving as a vital showcase for these competitions. He observed that it's no longer just commercial brands benefiting; many national teams and individual players have also capitalized on social media's reach.

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It's no longer just commercial brands that take advantage of social media, but many national teams and players have done so. Many teams have surrounded themselves with content creators, who in some cases have also traveled as "advisors" for footballers to control their presence on the three main platforms: Youtube, Instagram and TikTok.

Sidorenko highlighted that teams have enlisted content creators, sometimes acting as "advisors" for athletes, to manage their presence on key platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. These platforms are identified as the primary entertainment and information channels for young people, according to various international studies. This strategic use of social media reflects a broader trend where sports are adopting the same engagement dynamics as singers, artists, and even politicians.

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These are the three main entertainment channels for young people and also their three main sources of information, something that various international studies have corroborated, so it is evident that the message that is going to be disseminated there is already being worked on a lot.

The researcher pointed to examples like the New Zealand player Tim Payne, who gained icon status despite minimal World Cup involvement, or the younger brother of Lamine Yamal. These instances suggest that for a growing segment of the audience, the digital ecosystem has already supplanted traditional media. Sidorenko noted that in football, figures like Messi now grant exclusive interviews to content creators rather than sports newspapers. This approach aims not only to reach a young audience but also to connect with a more active viewership that generates conversation, extending the content's circulation beyond traditional media cycles, all while serving commercial interests.

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In reality, sport has entered the same dynamic that singers, artists, and even some politicians were already in, but now, because of the World Cup, there are things that attract more attention such as turning a player who barely participates in the World Cup (the New Zealander Tim Payne) or the younger brother of another (Lamine Yamal) into an icon.