(Yicai) June 12 -- The 2026 FIFA World Cup is offering Chinese home appliance manufacturers a new opportunity to show their products to a global audience, sponsoring the tournament and teams, and even signing up star players as brand ambassadors.

A Chinese engineer at Hisense’s television plant in Mexico told Yicai that he was still at work at nearly 11 p.m. on June 10 as his team rushed to coordinate deliveries so the Qingdao-based company’s World Cup-themed products could reach local markets on time.

“The FIFA World Cup marketing landscape was once dominated by Japanese brands, then by highly active South Korean companies, but now it is the turn of Chinese brands to take center stage," he said, pointing out that Hisense, TCL Technology, BOE Technology Group, and others have built factories in Mexico over the past decade, steadily raising local consumer recognition of the brands.

Hisense opened its Tijuana factory in 2016. Earlier this month, the plant rolled out its 50 millionth TV, and its annual output has reached about 10 million units. It also manufactures premium products, including a 116-inch RGB-Mini Light-Emitting Diode TV.

“We’re using this world-class sporting event to win broader recognition for China’s high-end display technologies,” a Hisense representative told Yicai. The person added that RGB-Mini LED TVs are being used at the Dallas International Broadcast Center and the Video Assistant Referee Center for the 2026 World Cup, giving the company’s display technology a prominent global showcase.

Hisense has been an official FIFA World Cup sponsor for three consecutive tournaments and has also become the official display technology partner of the VAR Center for the latest tournament. The firm ranks among the top three TV brands in both the global and North American markets.

Apart from custom TVs, Hisense has also launched tailored home appliances such as air conditioners and refrigerators for the World Cup, using scenario-based experiential marketing, Li Jiang, executive director of Yutang Sports, told Yicai. “Sports marketing is a critical springboard for the company’s overseas expansion,” he said.

In addition to three successive sponsorships of the UEFA European Championship and the FIFA World Cup, Hisense has built long-term partnerships with Real Madrid and FC Internazionale Milano, Li pointed out.

Hisense is likely to have invested at least CNY1 billion (USD147.7 million) in global marketing for this year's World Cup, according to one of its peers. The company has not confirmed this figure, but the event is undoubtedly a key lever for it to further boost its brand influence across the global TV market.

TCL is sponsoring the Spanish, German, and Argentine national teams at this World Cup, while also having long-term ties with the Czech Republic and Brazilian teams.

Many other Chinese home appliance makers have also launched World Cup-related marketing campaigns. Vatti has become the exclusive kitchen appliance partner of Spain’s national team in the Chinese mainland, while Dreame has signed Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo as its global brand ambassador.

“The overseas expansion of Chinese firms has entered a brand-building era,” a senior industry insider told Yicai. “By focusing on the three core pillars of sports marketing -- the right timing, influential occasions, and iconic personalities -- brands can rapidly raise their global profile through high-profile international sporting events.”

Emerging economies offer high growth potential for Chinese home appliance makers, the insider said. Soccer has the highest public participation rate in these regions, so partnerships with major tournaments and top-tier clubs can deliver superior returns on marketing spending, the person said.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Martin Kadiev