Fifa World Cup: TV sales in UAE double ahead of tournament

Television sales in UAE have doubled as Fifa World Cup approaches in Qatar with most of the big brands cashing in on the success of the mega event.

Millions of people will flock to Qatar and Dubai in the coming weeks to watch the world’s biggest football event. While millions of football fans in the UAE will watch the World Cup on TV at homes and different football zones, hotels and F&B outlets on big screens across Dubai and the UAE.

“Millions of customers are starting their World Cup preparations, and this includes getting their match-ready setup sorted. As a result, sales and demand for televisions on Noon have more than doubled,” said Neha Choudhary, growth and digital strategy, Noon.com

Choudhary added that top brands such as Samsung, LG, Hisense, Xiaomi, and Nikai have seen a hike in demand and become popular on the platform in recent weeks.

“Thanks to sales events like our recent 11.11 Sale and Noon’s upcoming biggest Yellow Friday Sale, customers will have more opportunities to improve their game-ready setup at incredible prices, with cashback incentives and more,” she added.

In addition to digital stores, brick-and-mortar outlets have also reported good TV sales driven by Fifa World Cup.

“We are witnessing a huge upsurge in TV sales in the run-up to World Cup, especially for the big screen TVs, the heightened interest for the most popular sports event in the world coupled with new technology and affordability on larger screens is driving a massive increase in demand,” says Mohammad Badri, director, Eros Group.

“Fans will spend an average of 5,400 minutes to watch their much-awaited month-long sport at the comfort of their home along with family or friends,” he said, adding that the UAE residents are looking at upgrading their TVs at least a minimum of a 65-to-98-inch screen for a heightened stadium experience as this is the first World Cup to take place in an Arab country.

Badri added that there is more demand for bigger screens across both brick-and-mortar stores and online channels.

“The average screen size being purchased this World Cup has gone up from 55 inches to 75 to 85 inches. We are also seeing record sales of largest screen TVs like 98 inch which we are seeing high demand in the last few weeks from our stores,” he added.

According to Redseer Strategy Consultants, around five billion eyes are expected to be glued to Fifa World Cup in Qatar, expecting a growth of over 43 per cent than the viewership witnessed during the Fifa World Cup in Russia.

“Covid fuelled digital penetration which has given fans multiple ways for football engagement. The habits of football fans are evolving, and so is the way in which they experience football. Their interest is directed not only to the 90 minutes of the game, but also to behind-the-scenes content; and not just to established tournaments, but also to eSports competitions,” said Sandeep Ganediwalla, Partner, Redseer Strategy Consultants.

“Historically, consumer spending increases during winter festival months. Mega shopping events like Black Friday drive shopping growth, and this coupled with World Cup will lead to much higher spending. People will be hooked to World Cup, and an interesting 83 per cent of football fans use a smartphone while watching the match on TV. We estimate higher customer spending in online channels across different sectors,” he added.