Telemundo has nearly sold out of 2026 FIFA World Cup ads, with 90% of its inventory for the Spanish-language presentation of the tournament sold as of Tuesday.
Ad sales for the 2026 World Cup are pacing ahead of past tournaments as Telemundo has doubled the ad spend for the event since the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Telemundo attributes the increased ad spend to more digital participation from brands, a diversified client base and greater sponsorship activations.
This year, NBCUniversal and Telemundo’s key marketing partners include Anheuser-Busch, AT&T, Bank of America, The Coca Cola Company, Diageo, McDonald’s, Toyota, Volkswagen of America and Xfinity. In North America, the World Cup has 60 brand partners across key categories like alcohol, auto, finance, QSR, retail and telecom.
The ad spend has been driven by soccer’s rise in the U.S., which has seen demand from advertisers soar over 400%, according to Telemundo.
“The growth of soccer in the United States coupled with the domestic nature of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and rising demand for both live sports and Spanish language content has proved to be the winning formula for our company, as NBCUniversal sits in its strongest position ever this far out from a FIFA World Cup tournament,” NBC Sports and Olympics EVP of advertising and partnerships Peter Lazarus said in a statement. “The upcoming competition in Spanish-Language on Telemundo and Peacock, will captivate a highly engaged and passionate audience that our partners are eager to connect with, and we are excited to deliver both brands and fans a world-class experience this summer.”
“The unprecedented demand for the World Cup 2026 underscores the undeniable power of Latino fans as an economic engine shaping the future of sports and culture in America,” NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises chief administrative and marketing officer Mónica Gil said.
“Advertisers recognize the opportunity this moment presents — a once-in-a-lifetime tournament taking place across North America – to drive engagement, loyalty, and cultural relevance at scale,” Gil’s statement continued. “Telemundo is uniquely positioned to deliver on that opportunity, and the response from the marketplace reaffirms our ability to connect brands with fans through the power and excitement of live sports.”
Taking place from June 11 to July 19, 2026, the FIFA World Cup consists of 104 matches, all of which will be broadcast live. 92 matches will air on Telemundo and 12 will air on Universo, marking the highest quantity of Men’s World Cup matches that have ever aired on a U.S. broadcast network. All matches will also stream live on Peacock and the Telemundo app.
