Multigenerational world from several screens

The Mexican team it is a lovemark, soccer fans in our country identify with it, feel empathy for its colors and in audience it is capable of breaking generational and demographic lines. In this World Cup, a new audience of tricolor fans will manifest, it is the Generation Z or centennial generation (born between 1997-2010), who live a mega event from different screens, platforms or social networks. This generation is not carried away only by ads or by a live game, they feed on content creators or create their own, but they want to feel virtually inside the dressing room.

“We are seeing a transformation of the media, where the king is the content. Digital media tend to complement the world of video. The ecosystem is broader and is evolving. Now audiences are exposed to different screens, the flexibility that exists allows them to complement each other. Younger generations, in this case, centennials, have a higher use of devices. It is the way to be impacted, while the Baby Boomers (born between 1946-1964) continue to be exposed to the traditional screen”, he analyzes for The EconomistSalvador Escalona, ​​Client Business Partner and head of TV Networks at Nielsen Mexico.

In the Russia World Cup 2018, the millennials (1981-1996) were that generational current that came from experiencing great social transformations, such as entrepreneurship outside of corporations, gender equality and the fight for LGBT+ rights. According to the influencer marketing platform BrandMe, the preferred brands of these young people (at that time) were Netflix, Google, Amazon, YouTube and Disney, and they were related to social networks. Instagram y Facebook.

The centennials will leave their legacy in the Qatar World Cup by living it and commenting on it with platforms that prioritize immediacy, a quality that will give them the feeling of being present. Here appears Tik Tok that will debut at the World Cup and it does so with more than 1000 million users globally.

Eridany Vázquez de la Cerda, Head of Sports and Gaming for LATAM at Tik Tok, tells this medium that fan users of the Mexican National Team represent Latin America on the platform, the largest muscle of conversations, publications and mentions about Qatar 2022. It is a community of more than 1.7 million fans following the account: miseleccionmx.

Why is the Mexican National Team the one with the most followers in Latin America?

“It pioneered the Tik Tok platform, which allows content for entertainment, sports, food, travel, education, etc. Tik Tok is not a social network but a content platform, the Mexican National Team entered this style of new content, vertically. The other National Teams were not pioneers, but they took advantage of the moment of the World Cup. In addition, it is a special World Cup, atypical in the calendar and it is the first time that Tik Tok will be in an event of this style, since in Russia 2018 it did not exist. At the Tokyo Olympics (2021) Tik Tok helped users to know what was happening. At the Latin American level, the Mexican National Team has been on the platform for approximately one year and was followed by Argentina, Uruguay, Costa Rica, and Ecuador. Other National Teams, such as England, France and the Netherlands, have quite a few followers and good engagement”.

On Tik Tok, the hashtag #miseleccionmx has more than 650 million views, an indicator of the success of the content that is generated, and television is not far from that reality, since in 2022 a National Team match was more watched than the Mexican soccer final. The World Cup Qualifying game between Mexico vs. the United States, on March 24, had an audience of 4.8 million viewers, while the final of the 2022 Opening of the Liga MX between Toluca and Pachuca accumulated a round trip rating of 3.7 millions of people.

As for the broadcasting rights for the World Cup, FIFA gave the company New IP Co., LLC the license to market them in 15 countries. In Mexico, Televisa bought the rights for TV, radio, mobile and internet. Sky has the same permissions, except for radio. And Televisa, in turn, granted the license to TV Azteca only to have games on television.

“In a soccer World Cup, it is not that there is a difference in terms of time or consumption, but now on which screen the World Cup is viewed. One thing is the platform, the way in which the centennial fans consume the content and the baby boomers, who prefer to see it to a greater extent on a big screen. In demographic terms, there are differences and the generational issue is very similar”, points out Salvador Escalona.

According to the profile of the fan of the Mexican National Team, how is the viewer defined in this World Cup in Qatar?

“The World Cup is a very particular event, because audiences that normally do not consume soccer are added. Traditionally we would say that a soccer match is consumed by a certain number of women and men, or of a certain economic level, but the World Cup is different in a country (Qatar) of which little is known about its culture and traditions. The consumption habits of this type of content are not typical. It is difficult to say what demographic we are going to, ”he replied to The EconomistAlberto Sosa, General Director of Televisa Sports.

This World Cup is a laboratory to learn more about the behavior of the fans. Nielsen Ibope, a company specialized in audience and data measurement, incorporates the Streaming Lab Panel tool, which allows audiences to be measured on the same panel for both open linear TV, pay TV, video games, everything connected to TV, streaming, smartphones, tablets and lap tops.

marisol.rojas@eleconomista.mx