Enhance experience with ads, not ruin it

When Kylian Mbappe warns that stopping a World Cup match midway 'breaks our rhythm', he exposes football's latest existential crisis. He is not alone. Several players and managers have voiced deep concern over Fifa introducing mandatory hydration breaks that double as commercial windows. Football's magic lies in its uninterrupted intensity - 90 mins of continuous tactical warfare. Forcing timeouts into the game to squeeze in ad spots moves sports advertising in the wrong direction. But live sport is getting more expensive. Broadcasters and streaming platforms are in an arms race for rights. Advertisers are ready to pick up the tab for large audience pools in an era of on-demand entertainment. More advertising inventory must be created around live sport to sustain itself. But this cycle catches up with the sport, degrading the experience that built pools of synchronous viewers.

Modern advertising is sophisticated enough to enhance the audience experience, not ruin it. Ads can integrate into the natural rhythm of any game and can be placed at the least disruptive moments. They can also be introduced to create community-driven content and companion media. Decentralised marketing builds in the culture of sport through emotional storytelling. Advertisers now have tools to deliver the right message to the viewer without compromising sport.

A generation ago, sport had to adjust to the needs of advertisers. One-day cricket was the happy outcome of broadcasters and advertisers coming together to create a new format of the game. Football is in a different league of popularity, though. The only continent where it needs traction is North America, and Fifa may be tempted to 'dress up' the game for US and Canadian fans. The World Cup is among a handful of truly global events that should set an example of how sport should change advertising. Smarter, not more, advertising will support the economics of live sport. Monetisation can be expanded through improved audience experience. The business model should flow from top of the pyramid.