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- How The Home Depot built a World Cup retail media play
- Why soccer fits the hardware retailer’s customer profile
- Hands-on activations that blend soccer and home improvement
- Partnerships, co-creation and supplier ties
- Measurement: brand lift, purchase intent and the long game
- How other hardware retailers are using the World Cup moment
The Home Depot has turned the World Cup into a chance to deepen customer relationships and grow its retail media business — even though it does not sell sports gear. By weaving soccer moments into in-store events, digital campaigns and brand collaborations, the home improvement giant is reaching a diverse audience that overlaps with its professional and DIY shopper base.
How The Home Depot built a World Cup retail media play
Orange Apron Media, The Home Depot’s in-house retail media arm, designed an omnichannel program tied to the World Cup. The approach leans on targeted activations, partner co-creation and real-world fan engagement.
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- Focus on a few marquee partners to create richer experiences.
- Mix of digital ads, physical activations and sweepstakes to drive interest.
- Programs built to reach both pro contractors and mainstream DIY shoppers.
Orange Apron’s goal: turn cultural moments into measurable brand and purchase lift for partner brands.
Why soccer fits the hardware retailer’s customer profile
The Home Depot’s professional customers — remodelers, electricians, plumbers and contractors — are ethnically diverse. That diversity mirrors the expanding soccer audience in the U.S.
- Hispanics account for about 30% of the U.S. construction workforce.
- A 2025 Nielsen report found Hispanic consumers were 87% more likely to have watched a World Cup qualifier in the prior year.
- Hispanic fans are also 39% more likely than the general population to be avid MLS supporters.
Executives at The Home Depot view the Hispanic and broader multicultural market as a key growth opportunity. The company projects that multicultural customers will form a growing share of the home improvement market through 2040.
Hands-on activations that blend soccer and home improvement
The campaign centered on experiential touches that let fans interact with brand products while enjoying World Cup energy.
On-site fan festival and stadium-style activations
- “Beckham’s Backyard” interactive houses appeared at official FIFA fan zones.
- Behr hosted a digital target-practice game where fans kicked soccer balls.
- Makita ran stations for creative crafts and tool-focused demos.
Mobile and in-store engagement
- A branded bus, partnered with Men In Blazers, doubled as a mobile studio touring host cities.
- In-store promotions included co-branded scarves tied to qualifying purchases.
- Retail locations hosted watch parties with giveaways, cornhole tournaments and pro-customer events.
Result: immersive encounters that connect product features to passionate fans and working professionals.
Partnerships, co-creation and supplier ties
Rather than spreading resources thin, The Home Depot concentrated on deep collaborations with specific suppliers. That allowed for co-developed content and activations that felt authentic to both the brand and soccer fans.
- Marketing partnerships extended beyond banner ads to grassroots, event-led engagement.
- Previous sports tie-ins include college football, MLS, March Madness and U.S. national team promotions.
- Brands gain a chance to speak directly to a high-intent customer set in memorable ways.
Measurement: brand lift, purchase intent and the long game
The Home Depot is tracking campaign impact through brand-lift metrics and intent signals. While the World Cup effort was ongoing, internal benchmarks and past programs point to meaningful gains.
- Co-branded sports sponsorships have shown the potential to boost purchase intent by as much as 40%.
- Analysts note that culturally relevant advertising builds long-term brand affinity, not always immediate sales.
Industry observers emphasize that experiential campaigns and national storytelling can complement digital performance media to strengthen consumer preferences over time.
How other hardware retailers are using the World Cup moment
Competitors have noticed that sports events create fertile ground for retail media. Ace Hardware’s retail media group, RedVest Media, has targeted soccer and baseball fans with awareness-driven campaigns.
- Brands run full-funnel strategies that include off-site programmatic buys.
- Efforts often amplify existing national messaging to reach fans consuming match recaps and highlights.
- Partnerships with data and activation platforms help deploy assets across the web.
The opportunity: reach customers when they’re highly engaged and receptive, and guide them toward research and purchase decisions.
