World Cup fans were exposed to junk food, alcohol and gambling ads every seven seconds

During the 2026 World Cup, viewers were exposed to adverts for unhealthy food, alcohol, and gambling every seven seconds, according to a study. Over 93,000 ads promoting potentially harmful products were aired during the tournament's coverage, reaching approximately six billion people through television, streaming, digital, and social media platforms. This ad blitz accounted for 39.3 hours of live play, or nearly a quarter of the tournament's total live broadcast time.

The University of Bristol and University of Oxford researchers analyzed all 172.6 hours of live play across the tournament's 104 matches using the UK's most powerful supercomputer, Isambard-AI. They found that the majority of ads, 65,722 in total, were for unhealthy food and drink brands, making up 28.1 hours or 16.3% of all live play. Alcohol ads followed with 9,266 logos and 8.2 hours of screen time, while gambling ads accounted for 6,429 logos and 4.2 hours.

The study's co-authors, Raffaello Rossi and Elisa Becker, expressed concern over the advertising, stating that it is particularly troubling given the evidence linking marketing for unhealthy products, alcohol, and gambling to increased consumption and various health, social, and financial harms, especially among children and young people. They argued that sport should be part of the solution to poor health, not a platform for promoting products driving such issues.

While the study only analyzed ads during live match coverage, it still highlights the significant impact of the 2026 World Cup as a powerful advertising platform for products associated with preventable illness and harm.