The 2026 FIFA World Cup is making an unprecedented impact across digital platforms as well as on the pitch. According to Tubular Labs, tournament-related content has generated 146.8 billion views across social video platforms since the competition kicked off on June 11, ahead of the quarter-finals.
Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo remain the tournament’s biggest digital attractions. World Cup-related content featuring Messi has accumulated 6.2 billion YouTube views, while Ronaldo has generated 5 billion views, making them the two most-discussed football stars on the platform.
Among content creators, Belgian influencer Celine Dept has emerged as the leading independent creator during the tournament. Her World Cup videos have attracted 1.6 billion views, second only to FIFA’s official account.
The tournament’s most-watched individual video belongs to iShowSpeed, whose recap of the Argentina vs Cape Verde match surpassed 202 million views in just over three days.
Tubular Labs also found that U.S.-based creators account for the largest share of World Cup video views across YouTube, TikTok and Instagram during the tournament, replacing Brazil, which led social engagement before the competition began but remains among the top five markets.