Walmart reveals soccer fans’ World Cup shopping habits
Data is starting to trickle in about how consumers’ shopping habits shifted during the World Cup.
A new study from Walmart shows how its soccer-watching consumers planned to grocery shop during the World Cup, from how much they would spend to what kind of snacks they would buy — and the company has seen some of these results validated over the course of the tournament.
About half of consumers who identified as soccer fans expected to increase grocery spending by at least 25% during major match weeks, Walmart found through surveys in June, according to its analytics arm Walmart Data Ventures. These surveys included 1,021 both casual and dedicated soccer fans who were members of the Walmart Customer Spark Community.
“The findings reflect a broad cross-section of engagement levels, which is part of what makes the behavior shifts we saw so relevant for brands looking to reach everyday shoppers during major cultural moments,” Nicole Ryner, group director of business strategy at Walmart Data Ventures, told Modern Retail in an email. “The biggest takeaway is that brands need insights that help them anticipate and evolve with demand, not just explain it after the fact. We’ve seen incredible energy from customers throughout the tournament — from watch party spreads to stocking up on favorite snacks and drinks — and near real-time, predictive insights help brands adapt as those shopping behaviors evolve.”
The majority of fans (78%) planned to buy salty snacks, followed by frozen foods and appetizers (64%); fresh deli items (54%); beer, wine and hard seltzer (53%); and non-alcoholic beverages (53%). Most consumers (61%) cited deals as a key purchase driver, while 59% said brand familiarity would influence their choices. About 90% anticipated making impulse purchases while shopping for gatherings.
Two-thirds of the surveyed soccer fans said they expected to watch matches with groups of two to five people. Twenty-one percent anticipated they would watch with six or more people. Walmart found that fans ages 25 to 44 were more likely to watch matches at bars, restaurants and organized watch parties than older consumers.
Fifty-six percent of soccer-fan shoppers ages 18 to 24 said they had discovered a new food or drink product because of marketing or advertising related to the World Cup, while other fans were less likely to say as such the older they were.
“One finding that stood out was a clear generational difference in how fans approached the tournament,” Ryner said, adding that shoppers ages 25 to 44 were more likely to try new products because of tournament-related marketing, while shoppers 45 or older tended to stick with familiar, trusted brands.
“It underscores that even when people are engaging with the same cultural moment, they experience and shop it differently — giving brands an opportunity to tailor how they connect with each audience.”
Since the survey was conducted, Walmart saw some of these findings play out in its sales data.
“Overall, we’ve seen an uptick in [sales in] game-day categories like salty snacks, deli and frozen desserts, as shoppers are leaning into quick, shareable foods consistent with their plans to host watch parties and gather with others to watch matches,” Ryner said.
Walmart said it has also seen a sales lift for items such as ranch dressing as soccer fans from around the world made trips to Walmart and other retailers to experience American food items they can’t find in their home countries.
“Viral moments also appeared to shape the basket, with a lift in items like condiments — a sign that social trends can shape a basket just as much as the game itself,” Ryner said.
A separate study from Arity showed the impact of the World Cup on retail and hospitality visitation within 10 miles of SoFi Stadium on the day of the June 12 opening match.
Arity found that visits to grocery, restaurant, hotel and sporting goods stores rose significantly in the hours before kickoff. Lunchtime restaurant visits were twice as high as the previous Friday, and grocery store visits were up by 30% between 11 a.m. and kickoff.
While visits were up compared to the previous week, dwell time was down, suggesting shoppers may have been buying snacks or prepared foods for viewing activities near the stadium or at home, said Joel Pepera, head of analytics at Arity.
“We were interpreting that as quick stops in as you were getting to your viewing location,” whether that be the stadium, a local bar or watch party. Many of these retail visits were likely from non-local visitors, as almost half of the devices within 10 miles of SoFi Stadium on match day were not there the week prior.
Rohit Tripathi, vp of industry strategy for Relex Solutions, a software platform for inventory and supply chain planning, said the World Cup has presented a challenge to retailers and brands in terms of predicting inventory availability. His company’s platform enables retailers to run multiple scenarios for how demand could play out.
“The reason why the World Cup is different from a normal seasonal peak is that the seasonal peak is predictable; you have years of history,” Tripathi said, adding that retailers couldn’t compare this World Cup to the previous one in Qatar because the markets are so different. “The World Cup is conditional. The demand curve depends on how the team performs, and there was no tournament last year in the U.S. to model this from.”
“What’s fascinating about a global event like this is how quickly and dramatically customer behavior shifts,” Ryner said. “The basket looks different. The stores near host cities look different. The real opportunity is turning those shifts into growth. Having visibility into changing customer needs allows brands and suppliers to anticipate demand, serve customers better and win in moments when shopping patterns are being rewritten this summer.”