All About Worldcup Popup Sponsorship (SFE & FFF)

---

For global brands, the World Cup is defined not only by what happens on the pitch, but by how fans experience the tournament across cities, stadiums, and public spaces.

As the event approaches, another competition begins — one driven by World Cup sponsors competing to create the most memorable fan experiences.

Visibility alone is no longer enough.
Today, becoming a World Cup sponsor means turning sponsorship rights into real-world experiences that fans can enter, engage with, and share.

Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, two activation models have become central to modern sponsor strategy: Stadium Fan Experience (SFE) and FIFA Fan Festival (FFF).

We work with World Cup sponsors such as Hisense to lead SFE and FFF activations, designing popup spaces and fan journeys that go beyond traditional sponsorship exposure.

What Is Stadium Fan Experience (SFE)?

Stadium Fan Experience (SFE) refers to the branded experiences a World Cup sponsor creates in and around the stadium.

While sponsorship once focused on logo placement and media exposure, fans today expect interaction. They want experiences that feel natural to the match-day atmosphere — not disruptive or overly promotional.

Through SFE, we help World Cup sponsors:

• • Design interactive environments near stadiums
• • Integrate products and technology into fan behavior
• • Encourage participation, photo-taking, and social sharing

When executed well, SFE positions the sponsor as part of the live event itself, rather than a backdrop to it.

What Is FIFA Fan Festival (FFF)?

FIFA Fan Festival (FFF) extends the World Cup experience beyond ticketed matches.

Hosted in large public spaces, FFF is designed for fans without stadium access, traveling supporters, and local audiences who want to experience the World Cup together.

A typical FIFA Fan Festival includes:

• • Live match screenings on large-scale displays
• • Entertainment programs such as music and cultural events
• • Sponsor-led activations and interactive zones

For a World Cup sponsor, FFF offers access to massive foot traffic and longer dwell times — often reaching broader audiences than stadium-based activations alone.

FIFA Fan Festival History

How FIFA Fan Festival Originated from Korean Street Cheering

The roots of FIFA Fan Festival can be traced back to Korea’s street cheering culture.

During the 2002 FIFA World Cup, fans across South Korea gathered spontaneously in city squares, parks, and public spaces to watch matches together on outdoor screens. Entire cities turned into shared viewing zones.

This fan-led phenomenon drew global attention. Recognizing the cultural power of public viewing, FIFA introduced the FIFA Fan Festival as an official program at the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Since then, FFF has remained a defining element of the modern World Cup experience.

Source: FIFA INSIDE

How World Cup Sponsors Activate Through SFE & FFF

Activating as a World Cup sponsor requires a different mindset from conventional brand popups.

1. Localization and Co-Branding at a Global Scale

The 2026 World Cup will be hosted across the United States, Mexico, and Canada, making localization a critical success factor.

We help World Cup sponsors deliver a consistent global brand message while adapting experiences to local culture, language, and fan behavior. When localization is done well, sponsor activations feel relevant, immersive, and emotionally engaging.

Co-branding also plays a key role. Sponsor logos often appear alongside FIFA and partner brands, requiring precise alignment in scale, color systems, and tone to clearly communicate official status.

We previously led a Qatar 2022 World Cup x EA Sports co-branding project, integrating multiple brand guidelines into a single global campaign.

See the EA FC Localization Case.

2. Designing Football-Driven Popup Experiences

For a World Cup sponsor, popup spaces should amplify the excitement of football.

In past activations for brands such as Midea, sponsor of Manchester City FC, we transformed product features into playful football interactions. Washing machines became goalposts, while robot vacuum cleaners moved across a miniature pitch.

By turning products into experiences, fans intuitively understood value without explanation. This approach reflects the core of effective SFE and FFF activation.

See the Manchester City × Midea popup activation case.

💡 Key Elements of Successful World Cup Sponsor Activations

• • Spatial planning based on stadium and fan movement
• • Environments that reflect World Cup energy and atmosphere
• • Interactive experiences connecting brand technology with football
• • Fan journeys designed for social sharing and organic reach

3. Creating Impact Through OOH Advertising

Out-of-home (OOH) advertising plays a critical role in the World Cup sponsor journey.

Placed along routes to stadiums, fan festival zones, airports, and urban landmarks, OOH placements reinforce sponsor presence throughout the fan journey.

💡 To be effective during the World Cup, OOH must:

• • Blend naturally into the World Cup environment
• • Deliver short, high-impact messages
• • Clearly communicate official sponsorship

During CES 2026, we led global OOH design for Roborock, highlighting its sponsorship of Real Madrid FC, while also designing football-inspired booth experiences.

We are currently developing global World Cup campaign messaging and OOH content for World Cup sponsors preparing for upcoming tournaments.

4. Long-Term Brand Value Through World Cup Merchandise

Merchandise extends the lifespan of World Cup sponsor activations.

Well-designed items continue to represent the brand long after the tournament ends, becoming everyday touchpoints rather than one-time giveaways. Sports towels, tumblers, folding chairs, string bags, cheering tools, and sponsor badges are particularly effective when usability meets football-driven design.

We design merchandise strategies that encourage participation and emotional connection — ensuring long-term brand impact beyond the event itself.

See the EA FC football club booth activation case.

The Role of World Cup Sponsors Has Changed

The World Cup is a global stage experienced simultaneously by audiences worldwide.

For today’s World Cup sponsors, success is no longer defined by presence alone, but by participation. Sponsors must step into the fan journey — across stadiums, cities, and shared spaces.

At EIDETIC, we help brands turn sponsorship into experience through SFE and FFF activations designed to engage, connect, and endure.

Game Developers Conference (GDC): How the Event Works

---

What Is the Game Developers Conference?

Game Developers Conference (GDC) is a developer-focused conference built for people who make games.

Each year, developers across disciplines—engineering, design, art, production, and business—gather to share how games are built in practice. The conference centers on technical knowledge, production experience, and peer-to-peer learning, with sessions led by industry practitioners.

In 2025, GDC brought together approximately 30,000 attendees, more than 400 exhibitors, and speakers from over 100 countries, with hundreds of sessions taking place across the week.

Conference: March 9–13, 2026
Festival: March 11–13, 2026

In 2026, GDC will be presented under the name GDC Festival of Gaming.
The event runs across a five-day conference schedule, with Festival programming concentrated over the final three days.

The Conference period covers the full range of sessions, including technical talks, postmortems, panels, and keynotes.
The Festival period aligns with peak on-site activity, featuring expanded networking, community-driven programs, and evening events.

Who Attends GDC?

The audience at the Game Developers Conference is professional and role-driven.

Core attendees include game developers across engineering, design, art, and production.
Senior developers, technical leads, creative directors, and studio founders also attend in large numbers.

In recent years, attendance has expanded. Indie developers, small studio teams, tool and middleware builders, and platform partners now make up a larger share of the audience.

As roles in the game industry become less rigid, GDC attracts professionals who work across development, technology, and community. This shift continues to shape how the event evolves.

How GDC Programs Are Structured

Conference Sessions Are the Core

Game Developers Conference is, first and foremost, a conference.
The main content of the event is its extensive lineup of conference sessions.

Throughout the day, attendees move between technical talks, design discussions, production postmortems, business sessions, and keynotes. Multiple sessions run in parallel, and there is no single agenda that everyone follows.

Instead of a fixed program, GDC operates as a self-directed learning environment. Attendees build their own schedules based on their role, interests, and level of experience, using the official session planner to navigate the density of content.

Expo Floor and Industry Booths

Beyond the conference rooms, GDC also features a large expo floor where companies across the game industry present their work.

These booths cover a wide range of areas, from studios introducing new games or works in progress, to engine and platform providers, middleware companies, production tools, and specialized technologies. In many cases, what is showcased is not a finished product but a technique, workflow, or solution that supports game development.

Unlike consumer expos, GDC booths are designed less around spectacle and more around conversation. They function as spaces for demos, practical discussion, and professional exchange.

For many attendees, exploring the expo floor is one of the defining parts of the GDC experience, offering a way to see how different segments of the game industry intersect beyond their own role.

Learning Beyond Formal Sessions

Learning at GDC does not stop at scheduled talks.

Informal conversations at booths, spontaneous meetings between sessions, and discussions in common areas often provide as much value as formal presentations. This blend of structured sessions and unstructured interaction is central to how knowledge circulates at GDC.

The conference is intentionally designed to support both planned learning and unexpected discovery.

Evening Programs and Community Events

While conference sessions and the expo floor shape the daytime experience, some of GDC’s most recognizable programs take place in the evening.

The Developer’s Concert celebrates game music as a creative discipline and has become a long-standing tradition within the developer community.

The Independent Games Festival (IGF) highlights innovation in independent game development, recognizing creative achievement across solo developers and small teams.

The Game Developers Choice Awards (GDCA) are uniquely peer-driven, with winners selected by fellow developers to honor craft, impact, and contribution.

These evening programs are often described as the most “festival-like” moments of GDC. However, they remain firmly industry-facing, serving as moments of recognition and shared identity rather than public showcases.

Marketing Agency for GDC

We support global game companies across major North American events, including Game Developers Conference, Anime Expo, San Diego Comic-Con (SDCC), and PAX West.

As a turnkey marketing agency, we manage strategy, creative, production, and on-site execution under one system. It allows brands to operate efficiently during complex, multi-day events like GDC.