Survey: Half of US plans to watch at least one World Cup match
June 11, 2026



As the FIFA World Cup 2026 readies to kick off, a survey from Harris Poll finds that half of Americans plan to watch at least one match on TV, streaming, or social media over the course of the tournament.

The survey also reveals that more than one in four Americans say they have only recently become more interested in football because of the upcoming World Cup, with millennials, Hispanic Americans and hybrid workers driving much of the surge in interest.


Additional findings include:

• 52 per cent of Americans say hosting major international sporting events in North America is making them more interested in sports they would not normally follow
• 51 per cent say they have noticed brands sponsoring or advertising around the World Cup
• 50 per cent say they hope their favourite brands get involved with the tournament in some way

“The 2026 World Cup is doing something our data rarely captures in real time: converting passive observers into active fans,” commented Jennifer Musil, Global Head of Research at The Harris Poll. “More than one in four Americans say they’re newly interested in soccer specifically because of this tournament. That’s not just a sports story – it’s a signal about how major cultural moments reshape consumer behaviour.”

The Harris Poll surveyed 2,148 US adults in May 2026.