Nike was left without teams in the final of the 2026 World Cup, while Adidas outfits Argentina and Spain
Adidas, for its part, described the World Cup final as a “moment of pride” for the company, although it refrained from sharing sales projections.
In addition to its sponsorships of national teams, Nike launched two new Mercurial boots before the World Cup, partnered with local streetwear designers, and revamped its soccer merchandising line in over 5,000 stores worldwide.
The victory of Argentina by 2-1 over England in Wednesday's semifinal crushed Nike's chances of sponsoring a team in the final of the 2026 World Cup. The result represents a significant visibility boost for its rival, Adidas, which outfits both finalists: Argentina and Spain.
Amid an intense brand battle both on and off the field, Adidas sponsored a total of 14 teams in the tournament. None of the 12 teams sponsored by Nike, including semifinalists England and France, managed to qualify for the final.
Both Nike and Adidas invested heavily in the tournament, but Nike had been betting on the World Cup to boost its sales and visibility amid years of sustained decline in its market share.
Even a World Cup victory was unlikely to change the brand's trajectory. Last month, Nike indicated that the recovery strategy of its CEO, Elliott Hill, faced significant obstacles, with persistent weakness in China and cautious outlooks overshadowing a slight improvement in fourth-quarter revenues.
Nike's stock lost nearly a third of its value this year, as investors grew increasingly impatient with Hill's progress.
“There are more pressing issues, such as footwear innovation, inventory control, and stabilizing sales and margins in China”, noted Morningstar analyst David Swartz. “Adidas got more publicity, but that's how it goes”, he added.
A spokesperson for Nike stated that the company always seeks for its athletes and partner federations to go as far as possible, although he clarified that “our vision of football has never been tied to a single moment”.
Its campaign “Rip the Script”, built around a film featuring soccer figures and celebrities (including French forward Kylian Mbappé and reality star Kim Kardashian), garnered 1.5 billion views during the first week of the tournament, according to the company. By the start of the World Cup, the jerseys of its teams had sold 2.5 times more than in the same period of Qatar 2022.
Adidas, the official sponsor of the World Cup, is a “clear winner” in the athletic footwear and apparel market, noted Drake MacFarlane, research analyst at M Science.
He explained that a stronger push in the United States and Europe helped the brand gain market share from Nike in the second quarter. Demand related to the World Cup provided an additional boost, although Adidas's improvement extends beyond the tournament, while Nike continues to face pressure in Europe.
Adidas' market share in footwear rose to 19.2% in June, up from 16.0% the previous year, while Nike continued to lose ground, according to data from M Science.
In April, Adidas executives indicated that the company had recorded around 250 million euros (US$292 million) in product reservations related to the World Cup during the first quarter, and expected a similar outcome for the current quarter.
