adidas, Fanatics, Foot Locker World Cup retail traffic

Sporting goods was the only retail category to post gains across all 11 US host markets this summer, with adidas, Fanatics and Foot Locker among the retailers capturing fan spending tied to the tournament.

Sporting goods retailers were the only retail category to post footfall gains across all 11 US host markets during this summer’s FIFA World Cup, according to a new analysis from location analytics firm Placer.ai and real estate services company Colliers.

The report found that most retail categories saw mixed results during the tournament, with performance varying significantly from city to city. Apparel stores and superstores recorded gains in some markets and declines in others, while dining traffic stayed largely stable overall. Sporting goods was the only category to deliver positive results across every host market tracked.

The findings support separate reporting by Retail Brew, which cited match-day traffic to sporting goods stores rising by an average of fourteen percent compared with pre-tournament norms. The Placer.ai and Colliers analysis uses a different methodology and shows varying levels of lift by market, but both point to the same conclusion: retailers directly linked to the event’s core activity benefited most from fan engagement.

Among individual retailers, adidas recorded a twenty-eight percent year-over-year increase in visits during June, according to figures cited by Retail Brew. Fanatics and Foot Locker were also highlighted for tournament-related activations and temporary retail concepts, though the report did not disclose comparable traffic data for either retailer.

The broader report shows consumers concentrated spending around categories that helped them participate in or experience the event directly. Bars and pubs also posted consistent gains on match days, while categories less closely tied to the tournament generated less predictable results.

Location remained a decisive factor.

Retail visits within a one-mile radius of host stadiums increased twenty-two percent compared with the pre-tournament period, an effect that diminished substantially farther from the venues. Proximity alone did not drive traffic; the strongest-performing locations combined event-related retail, gathering spaces and activations that became part of the fan experience.

For the sporting goods industry, the World Cup offered a rare example of a major global sporting event translating into measurable retail traffic gains across an entire host-market network rather than in isolated local markets.

The good news: consumers were not merely attending matches but also engaging with the wider football industry through merchandise and sport-specific retail. These numbers back up what was previously pure inference, and hopefully put the question to rest.