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Dentsu UK&I and Uber Advertising have run real-time retail media campaigns during the world's biggest football tournament, targeting consumers before and during matches across beer, spirits and snacking.
The activity focused on live match-time advertising aimed at fans preparing to watch games and make last-minute purchases. Campaigns were activated around match schedules, with media spend aligned to expected spikes in demand on Uber's platform.
The initiative shows how agencies and media platforms are tying major sporting events more closely to immediate sales rather than broader brand awareness alone. In this case, the focus was on match-viewing categories, where purchases are often made shortly before kick-off.
Retail media networks have drawn growing interest from advertisers because they place marketing close to the point of purchase. Quick-commerce services add another layer by allowing brands to reach consumers as they decide what to buy for an occasion, including live sport watched at home.
Dentsu said it used the tournament to optimise campaigns throughout the competition in line with audience behaviour and buying patterns. That meant adjusting activity around key fixtures rather than running a static campaign across the full event.
The approach also reflects a wider shift in advertising towards using signals such as timing, likely demand and shopping context to shape media buying decisions. For sectors such as alcohol and snacks, those signals can become more valuable during shared cultural moments that create predictable spikes in consumption.
Retail push
Uber Advertising has been expanding its retail media offering as brands seek clearer links between marketing spend and sales. Its arrangement with Dentsu shows how media agencies are using these tools to place adverts when consumers are more likely to complete a purchase.
The companies said the work drew on lessons from previous football tournaments, where live sporting moments had already demonstrated the value of real-time retail media activity. Those earlier campaigns helped shape the timing model used for this tournament.
For advertisers, the appeal is straightforward: football matches create regular peaks in attention and demand, and platforms that can connect that attention with a quick transaction may offer a more measurable route to conversion. That is especially relevant for low-consideration goods bought for immediate consumption.
Heidrun Thrainsdottir-Kelly, Retail Media Lead at Dentsu UK&I, outlined how the agency sees the opportunity.
"International football tournaments bring together millions of consumers around shared moments, creating significant opportunities for brands. Through Uber Advertising, we're helping advertisers activate in real time around key fixtures and reach consumers at moments when purchase intent is at its highest. As retail media continues to mature, we're seeing growing demand from brands looking to connect media investment more directly to commercial outcomes," said Heidrun Thrainsdottir-Kelly, Retail Media Lead at Dentsu UK&I.
Demand signals
Using live match schedules as a trigger for advertising underlines a broader industry effort to make campaigns more responsive to external events. Rather than planning media solely around broad demographic targets, advertisers are increasingly layering in contextual signals that indicate when demand may rise.
That trend has become more visible in retail media, where the value proposition depends on linking ad exposure to shopping behaviour. For quick-commerce platforms, sporting events are an obvious test case because consumers often make purchases in the run-up to a match, with little time between intent and transaction.
Uber Advertising said the model depends on combining audience insight with timing and proximity to a sale. In practice, that means identifying when fans are likely to be preparing to watch a game, then serving relevant messages tied to categories that fit the occasion.
Holly Dewsbury, Head of Agency Development EMEA at Uber Advertising, described the consumer patterns the company is targeting.
"Major sporting events create unique consumer demand patterns, and retail media is increasingly enabling brands to respond in real time. By combining audience insight, timing and proximity to purchase, brands can become more relevant when consumers are actively making decisions about what to order and buy," said Holly Dewsbury, Head of Agency Development EMEA at Uber Advertising.