3 in 4 urban Indian soccer enthusiasts intend to watch the FIFA World Cup 2022: Report

Ipsos releases global study on attitudes towards the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar.

According to the Ipsos Global Survey on Attitudes towards the FIFA World Cup 2022, at least 3 in 4 Urban Indians (76%) said they are planning to watch the FIFA World Cup 2022. The respondents claimed to be avid followers of soccer/ football and had heard of the FIFA World Cup.

The markets most enthusiastic about watching the FIFA games were Indonesia (80%), Argentina (79%), Peru (78%), Brazil (77%), and Colombia (72%).

"While India has never been a qualifier/ qualifying team at the FIFA World Cup tournament, the event per se is a major draw among urban Indians – especially among those aware of FIFA and following the game of soccer - given the sheer experience of watching top soccer teams and their iconic world class players slugging it out. The global event has a lot of stickiness among soccer enthusiasts. And a great opportunity for brands to connect with their key target groups,“ says Amit Adarkar, CEO, Ipsos India.

Also read: Expert Speak: After World Cup, advertisers’ hopes remain cautiously high for FIFA, PKL & other sports

Watching where?

Football enthusiasts in India say they will be watching the FIFA World Cup 2022 matches on multiple screens: 45% on TV, 42% on internet and 38% on any mobile device. Interestingly, global football fans too displayed similar preferences of gizmos in the same pecking order: 41% will watch on TV, 20% on internet and 15% on the mobile device.

Behavior during FIFA World Cup 2022 (among those who are aware of FIFA and intend watching the matches).

85% urban Indians said they intend watching the games with their family and friends; 81% urban Indians said they will watch the games with their work colleagues; 74% football enthusiasts in urban India said they will have a good luck charm kept during the games and 68% football enthusiasts polled in India said they will buy world cup themed products etc.

FIFA World Cup 2022 kicks off in Qatar from November 20th to 18th December, which team is likely to win the trophy and which team will emerge the runner‘s up?

Winner & Runner’s Up

The views were quite divided among global citizens, across the 34 markets polled. For the winner spot, the predictions in the pecking order named the teams of Brazil (21%), Germany (13%), Argentina (10%), France (10%), Spain (7%), England (6%), among others. For the runner’s up title, the teams expected to win included Germany (13%), Brazil (13%), France (11%), Argentina (8%), England (8%) etc.

"The usual suspects are the front runners for the winner and the runner’s up spot. And it is hard to predict the outcome at this juncture, as the views were divided among football enthusiasts,“ added Adarkar.

Sport of Football

At least 6 in 10 urban Indians polled (60%) claimed to be enthusiastic followers of soccer/ football. While, almost 4 in 10 global citizens (39%) claimed to be following soccer. Markets that claimed to follow the sport of soccer/ football most, included, Indonesia (69%), Saudi Arabia (67%) and United Arab Emirates (65%). Globally, India emerged 4th among 34 markets covered in the survey, in its enthusiasm towards the sport of football/ soccer. The markets following soccer least were Japan (14%), Canada (15%), Hungary (18%) and the US (19%).