The FIFA Fan Festivals are public viewing events organized by

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

and the host cities during the

FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...

. FIFA Fan Festivals (initially named FIFA Fan Fests) followed the success of public viewing at the

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea/Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams organized by ...

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and became an essential part of the tournament since the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. Fan Festivals take place in iconic locations of the host cities and feature broadcasts of football matches on giant screens, live concerts, parties, food, beverages, and other activities and entertainment. In 2022, FIFA reintroduced Fan Festivals under the new name for the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

held in

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

History

Background

Public screenings of sports and particularly football tournaments weren't a new thing by the beginning of the 21st century. The first

1930 FIFA World Cup The 1930 FIFA World Cup was the inaugural FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in Uruguay from 13 to 30 July 1930. FIFA, ...

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

was broadcast on radio and fans gathered around receiving stations.

pioneered TV broadcasts of football tournaments during the 1954 World Cup in

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, and people in many countries carried TVs on the streets and watched them collectively with their neighbors. The

1998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup was the 16th FIFA World Cup, the Association football, football world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams. The finals tournament was held in France from 10 June to 1 ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

was the first one to be broadcast on giant screens in city centers, but at that time the invention of massive public viewing was an anticipated effect of ticket shortage caused by a variety of factors.

2002, South Korea

The

co-hosted by

and

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, the first World Cup to be held in Asia, surprised the world with Korea's unique culture of public viewing and street cheering. Japanese authorities considered enthusiastic fan behavior deviant, acted restrictive on the matter of public viewing and limited it to specific sites, i.e. the National Stadium in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

where nearly 45 thousand people gathered to watch broadcasts of games taking place at

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

and

Sendai is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture and the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,098,335 in 539,698 households, making it the List of cities in Japan, twelfth most populated city in Japan. ...

. Korean public administration, on the contrary, tolerated public demonstration of fan excitement and supported the creation of public viewing areas (PVAs) in an urban environment where people could watch the games on so-called "big screens". In addition to PVAs set up by local authorities and electric bulletin boards on the buildings many local companies arranged mobile screens on trucks. The

South Korea national football team The South Korea national football team (; recognized as Korea Republic by FIFA) represents South Korea in men's international Association football, football and is governed by the Korea Football Association, a member of FIFA and the Asian Foot ...

showed remarkable performance throughout the tournament, and its supporters swarmed the streets and squares to watch broadcasts on the screens and celebrate collectively. The police tolerated extreme demonstrations of fan excitement, and Korean media portrayed street supporters in a positive light. Korean-style street cheering organized by the national team's supporting group Red Devils became a worldwide impression as nearly 7 million Koreans (1 in 7 of the population) gathered at PVAs during the semi-final game between South Korea and

. Public broadcasts and street cheering provided World Cup with a different "culture of viewing" that combined experience of high-quality TV broadcast and out-of-home reception at the stadium where companionship intensified the entertainment and enhanced the feelings.

2006, Germany

In preparation for the

, FIFA and the Organizing Committee sought a way to accommodate people planning to visit the World Cup. The experience of past World Cups and public viewing was conceptualized in 4-weeks long events for football supporters to meet, board, interact, partake in cultural activities, and watch all 64 games on giant video walls. Since 2004 the details on costs, logistics, safety issues, marketing, and broadcast rights were jointly hammered out by FIFA and the Host Cities Those public viewing events that became known under the name of Fan Fests served as an idea to provide football supporters without tickets a legitimate opportunity to partake in the World Cup. Unlike the past tournaments where ticketless fans were treated as security risks, the World Cup in Germany welcomed all football supporters thus generating a positive atmosphere even before the tournament began. Even though security planners and media were skeptical and cautious on the matter of public viewing, the skepticism was cast aside with the beginning of the World Cup. Fan Fests for the 2006 FIFA World Cup were set up in 12 Host Cities and attracted 21 million visitors throughout the tournament according to German National Tourist Board (FIFA claimed there were over 18 million visitors).

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

"Fanmeile" located at pedestrianized Straße des 17. Juni between

Brandenburg Gate The Brandenburg Gate ( ) is an 18th-century Neoclassical architecture, neoclassical monument in Berlin. One of the best-known landmarks of Germany, it was erected on the site of a former city gate that marked the start of the road from Berlin t ...

and

Victory Column A victory column, or monumental column or triumphal column, is a monument in the form of a column, erected in memory of a heroic commemoration, including victorious battle, war, or revolution. The column typically stands on a base and is crowned ...

with 14 consecutive video walls attracted 9 million fans over the duration of the World Cup with nearly 1 million supporters for each German football team game. For the first time in German history, an event scored more visitors than

Oktoberfest Oktoberfest (; ) is the world's largest , featuring a beer festival and a travelling carnival, and is held annually in Munich, Bavaria, from mid- or late-September to the first Sunday in October. The annual event attracts more than seven milli ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

Fan Fest scored 3 million visitors followed by 1.9 million in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, 1.5 million in

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

, 1.46 million in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, 1 million per

Dortmund Dortmund (; ; ) is the third-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, after Cologne and Düsseldorf, and the List of cities in Germany by population, ninth-largest city in Germany. With a population of 614,495 inhabitants, it is the largest city ...

and

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

, 500 thousand per

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

and

Hannover Hanover ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Its population of 535,932 (2021) makes it the List of cities in Germany by population, 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-l ...

, 471 thousand in

Leipzig Leipzig (, ; ; Upper Saxon: ; ) is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Saxony. The city has a population of 628,718 inhabitants as of 2023. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, eighth-largest city in Ge ...

, 350 thousand in

Gelsenkirchen Gelsenkirchen (, , ; ) is the List of cities in Germany by population, 25th-most populous city of Germany and the 11th-most populous in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia with 262,528 (2016) inhabitants. On the Emscher, Emscher River (a tribu ...

and 205 thousand in

Kaiserslautern Kaiserslautern (; ) is a town in southwest Germany, located in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate at the edge of the Palatinate Forest. The historic centre dates to the 9th century. It is from Paris, from Frankfurt am Main, 666 kilometers (414 m ...

. Those numbers exceeded all expectations, and some of the Host Cities had to expand the Fan Fest areas in the middle of the World Cup. The most popular Fan Fests were located in the inner city areas, and the approach to keep the city center generally "fan-free" applied by the authorities of Nuremberg proved ineffective as many football supporters preferred to stay in the picturesque city center. According to surveys conducted during the 2006 FIFA World Cup at the Fan Fests in Berlin, Frankfurt, and Munich 28% of visitors traveled over 100 kilometers to attend the event, and up to 84% came there together with friends. Around 21% of foreigners interviewed at Fan Fests visited Germany to see the World Cup without tickets to any game. Media coverage of events had an additional positive effect as pictures of fans celebrating in front of giant screens attracted even more visitors from neighboring European countries that spontaneously decided to take part in celebrations at Fan Fests. Despite minor inconsistencies in planning and execution, the Fan Fest concept was so successful, that numerous people later claimed personal responsibility for the invention. The visitors' expectations regarding Fan Fests were fulfilled. Throughout the World Cup Fan Fests served as modern

market square A market square (also known as a market place) is an urban square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. A market square is an open area where market stalls are tradit ...

s where communication and interaction strengthen the feeling of community. Out-of-home media reception made the emotional aspect of escape from everyday life more intense for participants. Pictures of football supporters celebrating in front of video walls became a typical illustration of the atmosphere in the country, while "Fanmeile" was later picked up as German Word of the Year. In 2007 FIFA and 12 Host Cities received the German Marketing Prize for Sports for the innovative nature and marketing concept of Fan Fests during the 2006 World Cup Finals. FIFA and the Host Cities succeeded in creating and comfortable environment for foreign fans as 95% of them surveyed at Fan Fests agreed that it was an unequivocal declaration of the international nature of the World Cup, and was not a mere event for Germans. A thought-out implementation of public viewing at such a large-scale football event as the 2006 World Cup set a precedent. Immediately after the 2006 World Cup, FIFA announced that it registered the

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a Good (economics and accounting), product or Service (economics), service f ...

for Fan Fests, took over the organization and marketing, and will make Fan Fests an integral part of future FIFA World Cups.

Locations

— Straße des 17. Juni (between

and

) *

— , Roncalliplatz, Rheinauhafen and Deutzer shipyard *

— (at banks of

Main river The Main () is the longest tributary of the Rhine, one of the major European rivers. It rises as the White Main in the Fichtel Mountains of northeastern Bavaria and flows west through central Germany for to meet the Rhine below Rüsselsheim, ...

) *

— Schlossplatz *

— Heiligengeistfeld *

— *

— Olympiapark *

— Volksfestplatz *

— *

— Augustusplatz *

— Glückauf-Kampfbahn *

— , Barbarossastrasse

2010, South Africa

FIFA had further developed the Fan Fest concept for

2010 FIFA World Cup The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. That time FIFA went global with 6 international Fan Fests in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, and

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in addition to 10 national Fan Fests in

Cape Town Cape Town is the legislature, legislative capital city, capital of South Africa. It is the country's oldest city and the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. Cape Town is the country's List of municipalities in South Africa, second-largest ...

Durban Durban ( ; , from meaning "bay, lagoon") is the third-most populous city in South Africa, after Johannesburg and Cape Town, and the largest city in the Provinces of South Africa, province of KwaZulu-Natal. Situated on the east coast of South ...

Sandton Sandton is a financial, commercial and residential area, located in the northern part of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality. Formerly an independent municipality, Sandton's name came from the combination of two of its suburbs, Sa ...

Soweto Soweto () is a Township (South Africa), township of the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan Municipality in Gauteng, South Africa, bordering the city's mining belt in the south. Its name is an English syllabic abbreviation for ''South Western T ...

Port Elizabeth Gqeberha ( , ), formerly named Port Elizabeth, and colloquially referred to as P.E., is a major seaport and the most populous city in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It is the seat of the Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipal ...

Bloemfontein Bloemfontein ( ; ), also known as Bloem, is the capital and the largest city of the Free State (province), Free State province in South Africa. It is often, and has been traditionally, referred to as the country's "judicial capital", alongsi ...

, Nelspruit,

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Provin ...

Rustenburg Rustenburg (; , Afrikaans and Dutch language, Dutch: ''City of Rest'') is a town at the foot of the Magaliesberg mountain range. Rustenburg is the most populous city in North West (South African province), North West province, South Africa (549 ...

, and

Pretoria Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country. Pretoria strad ...

. According to FIFA, the Fan Fests in Host Cities attracted over 2.6 million fans with Durban, Cape Town, and Port Elizabeth being the most popular location with 741 thousand, 557 thousand, and 276 thousand visitors respectively. International Fan Fest totaled 3.5 million fans with 350 thousand fans in Berlin at

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

semi-final followed by 93.5 thousand spectators in Mexico City for the

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

match and 83.7 thousand people in Rio de Janeiro for the

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

game. Australian fans ignored the time zone difference to attend the Fan Fest to watch

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

v. Germany game in the middle of the night. Berliner Fanmeile 2010

South African government The Government of South Africa, or South African Government, is the national government of the Republic of South Africa, a parliamentary republic with a three-tier system of government and an independent judiciary, operating in a parliamentary ...

considered the 2010 World Cup a huge success for the national economy. Hosting an international tournament helped the Host Cities to attract investments in sports venues, telecommunications, and transport infrastructure, boosted tourism, and promoted national identity (that was especially important for the country that was under

apartheid Apartheid ( , especially South African English: , ; , ) was a system of institutionalised racial segregation that existed in South Africa and South West Africa (now Namibia) from 1948 to the early 1990s. It was characterised by an ...

for 46 years). 2010 World Cup's legacy included development projects that benefited local communities and were directly related to FIFA Fan Fests. Mangaung Outdoor Sports Centre in

meant to become a Fan Fest location underwent repairs and upgrades that remained after the tournament was over.

authorities provided NGOs working on environment protection and sustainability initiatives a notable presence at World Cup's main Fan Fest at Grand Parade. Development projects in the City of Tshwane ranged from the extension of

CCTV Closed-circuit television (CCTV), also known as video surveillance, is the use of closed-circuit television cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place on a limited set of monitors. It differs from broadcast television in that the signa ...

to providing additional security for fans to support informal traders, vendors, and artists. Local catering vendors were certified and allowed to operate at Fan Fests and other venues; traders were provided an opportunity to sell local goods to visitors and artists participated in Fan Fest activities. All of them were added to the government database to be considered for future cooperation with the City of Tshwane authorities. In 2012 FIFA launched the 2010 FIFA World Cup Legacy Trust to support a wide range of development projects in sports, education, health, and humanitarian activities in South Africa.

Locations

— Grand Parade *

— New Beach *

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu language, Zulu and Xhosa language, Xhosa: eGoli ) (colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, Jo'burg or "The City of Gold") is the most populous city in South Africa. With 5,538,596 people in the City of Johannesburg alon ...

— Innesfree Park *

— Elkah Stadium *

— Mangaung Outdoor Sports Centre, *

— St George's Park * Nelspruit — Bergvlam High School *

Polokwane Polokwane (, meaning "Sanctuary" in Northern SothoPolokwane - The Heart of the Limpopo Provin ...

— Polokwane Cricket Club *

— Fields College School *

— Centurion Cricket Ground International *

— Olympischer Platz (in front of Olympiastadion) and Strasse des 17. Juni (Victory Column) *

—

Zócalo Zócalo () is the common name of the town square, main square in central Mexico City. Prior to the European colonization of the Americas, colonial period, it was the main ceremonial center in the Aztecs, Aztec city of Tenochtitlan. The plaza us ...

(Plaza de la Constitución) *

—

Jardins du Trocadéro The Jardins du Trocadéro (; Gardens of the Trocadéro) is a public space in the 16th arrondissement of Paris, France. It is bounded to the northwest by the wings of the Palais de Chaillot and to the southeast by the Seine and the Pont d'I� ...

— Copacabana *

— ( Villa Borghese gardens) *

—

Darling Harbour Darling Harbour is a harbour and neighborhood adjacent to the city centre of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, that is made up of a large recreational and pedestrian precinct that is situated on western outskirts of the Sydney central busines ...

2014, Brazil

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for list of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil fr ...

Fan Fests took place in 12 Host Cities:

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

Brasília Brasília ( ; ) is the capital city, capital of Brazil and Federal District (Brazil), Federal District. Located in the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West Region, Brazil, Central-West region, it was founded by President Juscelino ...

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...

Cuiabá Cuiabá () is the capital city and the largest city of the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso. It is located near the geographical centre of South America and also forms the metropolitan area of Mato Grosso, along with the neighbouring town of Várz ...

Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Southern Brazil. The city's population was 1,773,718 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the larg ...

Fortaleza Fortaleza ( ; ; ) is the state capital of Ceará, located in Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeastern Brazil. It is Brazil's 4th largest city—Fortaleza surpassed Salvador, Bahia, Salvador in 2022 census with a population of slightly over 2.4 mi ...

Manaus Manaus () is the List of capitals of subdivisions of Brazil, capital and largest city of the States of Brazil, Brazilian state of Amazonas (Brazilian state), Amazonas. It is the List of largest cities in Brazil, seventh-largest city in Brazil, w ...

, Natal,

Porto Alegre Porto Alegre (, ; , ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Brazilian Federative units of Brazil, state of Rio Grande do Sul. Its population of roughly 1.4 million inhabitants (2022) makes it the List of largest cities in Brazil, 11th-most p ...

, Salvador, and

Recife Recife ( , ) is the Federative units of Brazil, state capital of Pernambuco, Brazil, on the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of South America. It is the largest urban area within both the North Region, Brazil, North and the Northeast R ...

. Fan Fest was set up in iconic locations, common places for public celebrations. Brazilian football star Ronaldo became the Fan Fest ambassador for the 2014 World Cup in addition to his role as a member of the Organizing Committee. Due to the high cost of the World Cup infrastructure, the Host Cities wanted to attract private investors to co-finance Fan Fests for football supporters. I. e., the Municipality of Recife squandered public funds on the construction of Itaipava Arena Pernambuco (14th most expensive stadium in the world by that time with a total cost of 274 million) and claimed itself unable to fund the original Fan Fest project. In March 2014, Recife authorities declared they would wait for external financing for Fan Fest. The deadlock was resolved one month before the World Cup in May when FIFA and its Brazilian partner stepped in to organize Fan Fest in Recife on their own. 2014 World Cup Fan Fests attracted over 5.1 million fans, including nearly 1 million tourists from 202 countries. The Fan Fest at Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro was the most popular, with 937 thousand attendees throughout the World Cup, followed by São Paulo with 806 thousand visitors, Fortaleza with 781 thousand, and Manaus with 504 thousand guests. The Argentina v. Germany game was the most popular, with 265 thousand fans on Fan Fests in all 12 Host Cities.

Locations

– Praia de Copacabana ( Copacabana Beach) *

– Vale do Anhangabaú (Anhangabaú Valley) *

– Taguaparque ( Taguatinga) *

– (Expominas Expositions Centre) *

– Parque de Exposições (Expositions Park) *

– Pedreira Paulo Leminski (Paulo Leminski Quarry) *

– Praia de Iracema ( Iracema Beach) *

– (Black Beach) * Natal – (Fort Beach) *

– (Sunset Amphitheatre) *

– Cais da Alfândega (Customhouse Wharf). * Salvador – Farol da Barra (Barra Lighthouse)

2018, Russia

DSC 8405The world football championship in Russia 2018

For the

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

, Fan Fests took place in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg, formerly known as Petrograd and later Leningrad, is the List of cities and towns in Russia by population, second-largest city in Russia after Moscow. It is situated on the Neva, River Neva, at the head of the Gulf of Finland ...

Kazan Kazan; , IPA: Help:IPA/Tatar, ɑzanis the largest city and capital city, capital of Tatarstan, Russia. The city lies at the confluence of the Volga and the Kazanka (river), Kazanka Rivers, covering an area of , with a population of over 1. ...

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

Volgograd Volgograd,. formerly Tsaritsyn. (1589–1925) and Stalingrad. (1925–1961), is the largest city and the administrative centre of Volgograd Oblast, Russia. The city lies on the western bank of the Volga, covering an area of , with a population ...

Nizhny Novgorod Nizhny Novgorod ( ; rus, links=no, Нижний Новгород, a=Ru-Nizhny Novgorod.ogg, p=ˈnʲiʐnʲɪj ˈnovɡərət, t=Lower Newtown; colloquially shortened to Nizhny) is a city and the administrative centre of Nizhny Novgorod Oblast an ...

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...

Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg (, ; ), alternatively Romanization of Russian, romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( ; 1924–1991), is a city and the administrative centre of Sverdlovsk Oblast and the Ural Federal District, Russia. The ci ...

Samara Samara, formerly known as Kuybyshev (1935–1991), is the largest city and administrative centre of Samara Oblast in Russia. The city is located at the confluence of the Volga and the Samara (Volga), Samara rivers, with a population of over 1.14 ...

, and Saransk. In November 2017, FIFA unveiled

Russia national football team The Russia national football team () represents Russia in men's international football. It is controlled by the Russian Football Union (, ), the governing body for football in Russia. Russia's home ground is the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow and ...

's record goalscorer Aleksandr Kerzhakov and French 1998 World Cup and

Euro 2000 The 2000 UEFA European Football Championship, also known as Euro 2000, was the 11th UEFA European Championship, a football tournament held every four years and organised by UEFA, the sport's governing body in Europe. The finals tournament was ...

winner

Marcel Desailly Marcel David Desailly (; 7 September 1968) is a French former professional Association football, footballer, who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. During a successful career at club level, lasting from 1986 to 2006, Desailly won se ...

as ambassadors for Fan Fests of the 2018 Cup. According to FIFA, the Fan Fests attracted 7.7 million people, exceeding the numbers of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil by a quarter. The festivals at

Sparrow Hills Sparrow Hills (, ), formerly known as Lenin Hills (, ), is a hill on the right bank of the Moskva River and one of the highest points in Moscow, reaching a height of above the river level. The observation platform is on a steep bank above ...

in Moscow and Konyushennaya Square in Saint Petersburg exceeded 1 million participants each with 1.87 and 1.303 million fans, respectively. 738 thousand people participated in Fan Fest in Kazan. Nizhny Novgorod, Samara, and Volgograd totaled 600 thousand each; followed by 500 thousand per Sochi and Rostov-on-Don, 400 thousand in Saransk, 385 thousand in Kaliningrad, and 310 thousand in Ekaterinburg. The

—

match alone attracted nearly half a million fans to Fan Festivals all over the country. The broadcast time for all the games totaled 917 hours and the event schedule for Fan Fests reached 323 hours.

Locations

—

(in front of

Moscow State University Moscow State University (MSU), officially M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University,. is a public university, public research university in Moscow, Russia. The university includes 15 research institutes, 43 faculties, more than 300 departments, a ...

) *

— Konyushennaya Square *

— Kazan Family Center (on the bank of Kazanka River) *

— Sochi Seaport Area (square of South Mall of the Seaport) *

— 62 Armii Embankment *

— Minina i Pozharskogo Square *

— Teatralnaya Square *

— Central Square (near the House of Soviets) *

— Mayakovsky Central Park of Entertainment and Culture *

— Kuybyshev Square * Saransk — Sovetskaya Square

2022, Qatar

For the 2022 World Cup in

, which became the first sports mega-event to be hosted in the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

, FIFA reimagined and reintroduced Fan Fest as a more diverse and inclusive Fan Festival. The new vision combined public viewing on a giant screen with a wider variety of cultural activities, art, music, and gastronomy. Fan Festivals introduced numerous digital and physical football-related activities, such as exclusive football games with the participation of FIFA Legends. FIFA+ digital platform became an essential part of the Fan Festivals to provide fans access to every important moment of the World Cup. The main Fan Festival took place at Al Bidda Park along the scenic

Doha Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...

Corniche (bayside promenade) on 20 November — 18 December 2022. The 146,000 m² site accommodated up to 40,000 guests at a time. In 2022, FIFA also introduced a new licensing model, which allowed its partners to launch local Fan Festivals in major cities outside the host countries to make the tournament experience more accessible to the global fan community. This approach was meant to answer the challenges of running FIFA mega-events in smaller countries like Qatar. In partnership with

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...

, FIFA launched Fan Festival in

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

. It also partnered with AB InBev brands to run BudX Fan Festivals in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...

, and

Dubai Dubai (Help:IPA/English, /duːˈbaɪ/ Help:Pronunciation respelling key, ''doo-BYE''; Modern Standard Arabic, Modern Standard Arabic: ; Emirati Arabic, Emirati Arabic: , Romanization of Arabic, romanized: Help:IPA/English, /diˈbej/) is the Lis ...

, Corona Fan Festival in

, and

Brahma Brahma (, ) is a Hindu god, referred to as "the Creator" within the Trimurti, the triple deity, trinity of Para Brahman, supreme divinity that includes Vishnu and Shiva.Jan Gonda (1969)The Hindu Trinity, Anthropos, Bd 63/64, H 1/2, pp. 212– ...

Fan Festivals in

and

. These international events welcomed a combined total of 460,000 visitors. To respect the

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

traditions that prohibit alcohol consumption, which is considered an essential

dionysian The Apollonian and the Dionysian are philosophical and literary concepts represented by a duality between the figures of Apollo and Dionysus from Greek mythology. Its popularization is widely attributed to the work ''The Birth of Tragedy'' by Fri ...

festive social ritual of the fan culture, FIFA decided to place some restrictions. Alcohol beverages were only served at the Fan Festival site between 6:30 PM and 1 AM, Within the context of the 2022 World Cup, this approach seamlessly complemented the new vision of Fan Festivals as it provided families with kids an alcohol-free zone for most of the day. FIFA Fan Festival at Al Bidda Park attracted around 70,000 daily visitors, and a total of 1.8 fans attended the festival site over during the World Cup. For the first time in Fan Festivals history, the 2022 edition got its official anthem by Myriam Fares,

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian rapper, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as the "Queen of Rap" and one of the most influential rappers of all time, she is noted for her ...

, and

Maluma Juan Luis Londoño Arias (born 28 January 1994), known professionally as Maluma, is a Colombian singer. Born and raised in Medellín, he developed an interest in music at a young age, recording songs since age sixteen. Arias released his debu ...

. 146 music artists performed at the main Fan Festival venue, including

Nora Fatehi Nora Fatehi (born 6 February 1992) is a Canadian dancer and actress based in India. She has appeared in Hindi cinema, Hindi, Telugu cinema, Telugu and Malayalam cinema, Malayalam films. Fatehi made her acting debut with the Hindi film ''Roar: ...

Gims Gandhi Alimasi Djuna (born 6 May 1986), known professionally as Maître Gims and more recently just Gims (stylized in all caps), is a Congolese singer, rapper, producer, and songwriter. He grew up in France and currently lives in France and Moro ...

Calvin Harris Adam Richard Wiles (born 17 January 1984), known professionally as Calvin Harris (and sometimes under the stage name Love Regenerator), is a Scottish DJ, record producer, singer, and songwriter. His debut studio album, ''I Created Disco'' (2007 ...

, Patoranking, Kizz Daniel,

Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is a co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer; a member of the supergroup LSD (group), ...

, Trinidad Cardona, Stonebwoy,

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican dancehall musician. Paul's first album, ''Stage One'', was released in 2000. He gained international fame with his second album, ''Dutty Rock'', in 2002. Its single "Get Busy ...

, and

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Michael Jackson, one of the most culturally significan ...

impersonator Rodrigo Teaser.

Locations

— Al Bidda Park International *

— Dubai Harbour *

— Outernet *

— Plaza de la República *

— Copacabana *

— Vale do Anhangabaú *

— S Factory

2023, Australia and New Zealand

From 20 July to 20 August 2023, Fan Festivals were rolled out for the first time for the Women's World Cup in

and

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

—the biggest women's sporting event worldwide. Nine venues were launched in the host cities of

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; ) is the second-most populous city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from ("fort of Edin"), the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of S ...

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...

, and

Wellington Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the third-largest city in New Zealand (second largest in the North Island ...

. The Fan Festival in Auckland was closed for the first day on 20 July to pay respect to shooting victims in downtown Auckland that day. Following the Fan Festival concept introduced at the

, the venues in Australia and New Zealand provided public viewing of games, various sports and cultural activities, street entertainers, gastronomy by award-winning

chef A chef is a professional Cook (profession), cook and tradesperson who is proficient in all aspects of outline of food preparation, food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term (), the di ...

s, and local

street food Street food is food sold by a Hawker (trade), hawker or vendor on a street or at another public place, such as a market, fair, or park. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consumption ...

, lectures, discussions, and art performances. The music line-ups presented performers working in different genres, from pop to folk, including

Kimbra Kimbra Lee Johnson (born 27 March 1990), known Mononymous person, mononymously as Kimbra, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. Known for mixing pop with R&B, jazz and rock musical elements, her accolades include four ARIA Music Awards, two 2 ...

, San Cisco, Montaigne (in Adelaide),

Running Touch Matthew Victor Kopp, who performs as Running Touch, is an Australian singer, songwriter and record producer. Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' &/or 'Performer:' In addition to his eponymo ...

, Kita Alexander, FELIVAND, Sahara Beck, Eliza & The Delusionals (in Brisbane), Sycco, Samantha Jade (in Melbourne), Katy Steele, Crucial Rockers, Joan & The Giants, Abbe May (in Perth),

Jessica Mauboy Jessica Hilda Mauboy (; born 4 August 1989) is an Australian singer. Born and raised in Darwin, Northern Territory, she rose to fame in 2006 on the Australian Idol (season 4), fourth season of ''Australian Idol'', where she was runner-up and s ...

, Steph Strings, Jacoténe, Jack River, Mia Wray, Tia Gostelow, Mikayla Pasterfield, Little Green (in Sydney), JessB, Ladi6, Troy Kingi, Tuawahine, Hollie Smith,

Kaylee Bell Kaylee Bell is a New Zealand singer-songwriter. In 2013, she won the Toyota Star Maker award in Australia making her the first New Zealand-born artist to win since Keith Urban in 1990. Bell is currently the 'Most Streamed Female Country Artist' ...

(in Auckland), Bic Runga, Topp Twins, Ladyhawke (in Dunedin), AACACIA, Robinson, Ella Monnery, Lou'ana (in Hamilton), Rubi Du, Maisey Rika, Che Fu (in Wellington). The Playground areas at Fan Festivals offered different activities and games to showcase football skills: hungerball, bubble football, football

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various Golf club, clubs to hit a Golf ball, ball into a series of holes on a golf course, course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standa ...

, football

snooker Snooker (pronounced , ) is a cue sport played on a rectangular Billiard table#Snooker and English billiards tables, billiards table covered with a green cloth called baize, with six Billiard table#Pockets 2, pockets: one at each corner and ...

, football

darts Darts is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small projectile point, sharp-pointed projectile, projectiles known as dart (missile), darts at a round shooting target, target known as a #Dartboard, dartboard. Point ...

, reaction station, penalty practice shoot-out, and shooting speedometer. The visitors could participate in VR experiences,

silent disco A silent disco or silent rave is an event where people dance to music listened to on wireless headphones. Rather than using a speaker system, music is broadcast via a radio transmitter with the signal being picked up by wireless headphone recei ...

, glitter make-up sessions by local

drag queen A drag queen is a person, usually male, who uses Drag (entertainment), drag clothing and makeup to imitate and often exaggerate Femininity, female gender signifiers and gender roles for entertainment purposes. Historically, drag queens have ...

s, and ingenious cultural events, such as Poi workshops and

tā moko ' is the permanent marking or tattooing as customarily practised by Māori, the indigenous people of New Zealand. It is one of the five main Polynesian tattoo styles (the other four are Marquesan, Samoan, Tahitian and Hawaiian). (tattooi ...

lessons at Fan Festivals in New Zealand. Fan Festivals introduced an intense program of lectures and panel discussions on the history and future of women in sports, culture, business, and society; on inclusion, sustainability, and gender equality in sports; and on empowering

LGBTQ+ LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The group i ...

community through football. The guests included renowned members of the Australia women's national soccer team (the Matildas): Jill Latimer, Emma Wirkus, Tracey Jenkins, Sharon Black, Victoria Balomenos, Kristyn Swaffer, and FIFA Legends. The first cultural events within the Fan Festival sites started in March 2023 with the outdoor exhibitions of the 2023 Women's World Cup official poster and host cities posters in

and

. In all host cities, FIFA opened FIFA Museums with exhibitions dedicated to the history of the World Cup and past world champions. Additionally, the FIFA Museum in Sydney also presented a "Calling the Shots: Faces of Women's Football" exhibition, which attracted over 50 thousand visitors, and the FIFA Museum in Auckland launched its own pop-up exhibition space, "The Rainbow of Shirts." A total of 777 thousand people attended Fan Festivals in 9 host cities at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup. The venue in Tumbalong Park, Darling Harbour, Sydney, was the largest, with 250 thousand visitors over 31 days of the tournament. The attendance peaked on 12 August 2023, for Australia's quarter-final win over France, with 68 thousand people across all venues.

Locations

— Festival Plaza *

— South Bank Parklands *

— Federation Square *

— Forrest Place *

— Tumbalong Park *

— The Cloud *

— Dunedin Town Hall *

— Globox Arena *

— Shed 6

2026, North America

In June 2022, FIFA announced the list of host cities and stadiums for the

2026 FIFA World Cup The 2026 FIFA World Cup, marketed as FIFA World Cup 26, will be the 23rd FIFA World Cup, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's Association football, soccer championship contested by the List of men's n ...

which will be collectively hosted by the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, and

. The list included

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

;

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

, and

Monterrey Monterrey (, , abbreviated as MtY) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern Mexican state of Nuevo León. It is the ninth-largest city and the second largest metropolitan area, after Greater Mexico City. Located at the foothills of th ...

;

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

Kansas City The Kansas City metropolitan area is a bi-state metropolitan area anchored by Kansas City, Missouri. Its 14 counties straddle the border between the U.S. states of Missouri (9 counties) and Kansas (5 counties). With and a population of more t ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Miami Miami is a East Coast of the United States, coastal city in the U.S. state of Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade County in South Florida. It is the core of the Miami metropolitan area, which, with a populat ...

, New York /

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, and

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

in the

. Proposed Fan Festival spaces included locations such as

Liberty State Park Liberty State Park (LSP) is a park in the U.S. state of New Jersey, located on Upper New York Bay in Jersey City, New Jersey, Jersey City opposite Liberty Island and Ellis Island. The park opened in 1976 to coincide with United States Bicenten ...

(

Jersey City, New Jersey Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...

( New York), and the

National Mall The National Mall is a Landscape architecture, landscaped park near the Downtown, Washington, D.C., downtown area of Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States. It contains and borders a number of museums of the Smithsonian Institu ...

(

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

Locations

—

Fort York Fort York is an early 19th-century military fortification in the Fort York neighbourhood of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The fort housed members of the British and Canadian militaries and defended the entrance to Toronto Harbour. The fort featu ...

and The Bentway *

— Hastings Park *

— Plaza de la Liberación *

—

— Fundidora Park *

— Centennial Olympic Park *

—

Boston City Hall Boston City Hall is the seat of local government in the United States, city government of Boston, Massachusetts. It includes the offices of the List of mayors of Boston, mayor of Boston and the Boston City Council. The current hall was built in ...

or Boston Common *

— Fair Park *

— East Downtown Houston *

— National World War I Museum and Memorial *

— Exposition Park or

SoFi Stadium SoFi Stadium ( ) is a domed multi-purpose stadium in Inglewood, California, U.S., a suburb of Los Angeles. SoFi occupies the former site of the Hollywood Park Racetrack and neighbors the Kia Forum and Intuit Dome. Opened in September 2020, the ...

— Lummus Park or Bayfront Park * New York/New Jersey —

— Fairmount Park *

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a List of regions of California, region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose, California, S ...

— Downton San Jose Campus or

Moscone Center The George R. Moscone Convention Center (), popularly known as the Moscone Center, is the largest convention and exhibition complex in San Francisco, California, United States. The complex consists of three main halls spread out across three bl ...

—

Seattle Center The Seattle Center is an entertainment, education, tourism and performing arts center located in the Lower Queen Anne, Seattle, Lower Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle, Washington, United States. Constructed for the Century 21 Exposition, 1962 W ...

In addition, the state of Washington will have additional fan zones in Bellingham, Bremerton, Everett, Olympia,

Spokane Spokane ( ) is the most populous city in eastern Washington and the county seat of Spokane County, Washington, United States. It lies along the Spokane River, adjacent to the Selkirk Mountains, and west of the Rocky Mountain foothills, south ...

, Tacoma, Tri-Cities,

, and Yakima.

Organization

Sponsorship

FIFA offers its affiliates various sponsorship and partnership opportunities that provide recognition across FIFA Fan Fests in Host Cities. 2010 World Cup Fan Fests introduced

The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational corporation founded in 1892. It manufactures, sells and markets soft drinks including Coca-Cola, other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages. Its stock is lis ...

as Presenting sponsor,

MTN Group MTN Group Limited (formerly M-Cell) is a South Africa, South African multinational corporation and mobile telecommunications provider. Its head office is in Johannesburg. MTN is among the List of mobile network operators, largest mobile netwo ...

and Neo Africa as sponsors, and

South African Broadcasting Corporation The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) is the public broadcaster in South Africa, and provides 19 radio stations (Amplitude modulation, AM/Frequency modulation, FM) as well as 6 television broadcasts and 3 OTT Services to the general ...

as the Official broadcaster. FIFA Fan Fests at the 2014 World Cup were sponsored by AmBev, The Coca-Cola Company, Hyundai Kia, Banco Itaú,

Johnson & Johnson Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is an American multinational pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical technologies corporation headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, and publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange. Its common stock is a c ...

, Oi, and

Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...

. 2018 FIFA Fan Fest in

introduced

Adidas Adidas AG (; stylized in all lowercase since 1949) is a German athletic apparel and footwear corporation headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Bavaria, Germany. It is the largest sportswear manufacturer in Europe, and the second largest in the ...

, The Coca-Cola Company, Wanda,

Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐsˈprom) is a Russian State-owned enterprise, majority state-owned multinational Energy industry, energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. The Gazprom name is a contract ...

, Hyundai Group,

Qatar Airways Qatar Airways Company Q.C.S.C. (, ''al-Qaṭariyya''), operating as Qatar Airways, is the flag carrier of Qatar. Headquartered in the Qatar Airways Tower in Doha, the airline operates a hub-and-spoke network, flying to over 170 internatio ...

, and Visa as FIFA Partners, and

Budweiser Budweiser () is an American-style pale lager, a brand of Belgian company AB InBev. Introduced in 1876 by Carl Conrad & Co. of St. Louis, Missouri, Budweiser has become a large selling beer company in the United States. Budweiser is a filte ...

, Hisense,

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...

, Mengniu, and Vivo as World Cup sponsors. 2022 FIFA Fan Festivals in

introduced

, The Coca-Cola Company, Wanda, QatarEnergy, Hyundai Group,

, and Visa as FIFA Partners, and

, Hisense,

, Mengniu, and Vivo as World Cup sponsors.

Regulations

FIFA requires the host countries to apply specific

by-law A by-law (bye-law, by(e)law, by(e) law), is a set of rules or law established by an organization or community so as to regulate itself, as allowed or provided for by some higher authority. The higher authority, generally a legislature or some othe ...

s and regulations for the duration of the World Cups. Those measures are meant to provide FIFA, its sponsors, and partners exclusive rights within and around sports venues and Fan Festivals. Such regulations are included in World Cup-specific laws such as Special Measures Act in South Africa, General World Cup Law in Brazil, and The Federal Law on Carrying out the FIFA World Cup in 2018 and FIFA Confederation Cup in 2017 in Russia. Regarding FIFA Fan Festivals those legislations regulate advertising, signage, street trading and vending, beautification, and decorum. According to those laws, FIFA, its sponsors, partners, and authorized third parties get exclusive rights to advertise and sell goods, food, and beverage within and around Fan Festivals. Nonetheless, softened those restrictions every World Cup. In 2006 it happened due to protests from Organising Committee pressured by German companies. In 2010, local informal business was integrated into World Cup events through development projects promoting local culture. In 2014, local businesses, NGOs, community organizations, and local authorities achieved that through negotiations.

Experience

The entrance-free FIFA Fan Festivals provide visitors with an inclusive, special, and highly emotional way to watch World Cup games. That way Fan Festivals attract people who would otherwise never go to a sports venue. I.e. according to monitoring and surveys during the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, the share of female supporters at Fan Fests reached 44% thereby notably exceeding the share of women at stadiums. FIFA doesn't prohibit alcohol consumption at Fan Festivals as monitoring through the 2006 World Cup in Germany, 2010 World Cup in South Africa and 2014 World Cup in Brazil proved the sale of alcohol cause no public disturbance or violence while the absence of alcohol at Fan Festivals may discourage fans from visiting PVAs and guide them towards peripheral bars and areas where they may be targeted by hooligans. Due to FIFA's policy, Brazil even had to temporarily lift its ban on alcohol sales at football matches enforced in 2003 in a bid to curb fan violence. In addition to live broadcasts, FIFA Fan Festivals offer food and beverages, merchandise, and various entertainment events by local and international artists. The start of the 2006 World Cup was celebrated by a concert at Fan Fest in Berlin, kicked off by Scottish rock band Simple Minds and followed by

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

pop singer

Nelly Furtado Nelly Kim Furtado ( , ; born December 2, 1978) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. She has sold over 45 million records, including 35 million in album sales worldwide, making her one of the most successful Canadian artists. Critics have noted ...

, English band Right Said Fred and Italian singers Gianna Nannini and

Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor. He rose to fame in 1994 after winning the newcomers' section of the 44th Sanremo Music Festival performing " Il mare calmo della sera". Since 1994, Bocelli has recorded 15 solo st ...

. Live concerts and shows followed on other World Cup days when there were no games scheduled. In South Africa, Ziggy Marley performed at Fan Fest in Johannesburg while Port Elizabeth Fan Fest presented a concert by

Fatboy Slim Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known as Fatboy Slim, is an English musician and DJ who helped popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. His music makes extensive use of Sampling (music), samples from eclectic ...

, Locnville, and Just Jinjer. International Fan Fests' line-ups included Velile, K'naan, Uwu Lena, and Eisblume in Berlin, La Sonora Dinamita in Mexico, and Stan Walker and Cassie Davis in Sydney. In 2010 the event schedule for Fan Fests totaled 2600 hours in Host Cities and 1600 hours at International Fan Fests. In Brazil FIFA's broadcasting partner,

TV Globo TV Globo (stylized as tvglobo; , ), formerly known as Rede Globo de Televisão (; shortened to Rede Globo) or simply known as Globo, is a Brazilian free-to-air Television broadcasting, television network, launched by media proprietor Roberto M ...

, organized 754 live music performances at Fan Fests in Host Cities through 25 days of the World Cup. Cristiano Araújo, Claudia Leitte, Jota Quest, Skank, Luan Santana, and

Gusttavo Lima Nivaldo Batista Lima (born September 3, 1989), known by his stage name Gusttavo Lima (), is a Brazilian singer, songwriter and record producer. He is known in Brazil for his many hit songs, and gained international prominence through his 2011 s ...

performed for Brazilian and foreign fans at 10 fan zones. Fan Fest organizers also aimed to promote local culture via various entertaining activities and provide a family-friendly environment where children could follow the parents or play in secured child-friendly areas. 2018 FIFA Fan Fests in Russia introduced

Zemfira Zemfira Talgatovna Ramazanova (, ; born 26 August 1976) is a Russian rock musician. She has been performing since 1998 and has been popular in Russia and other Post-Soviet states, former Soviet republics. To date Zemfira has sold over 3 million ...

, Bravo, Kasta, Vadim Samoilov from

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, Billy's Band, Chaif, Diskoteka Avariya

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, Benny Benassi, Paul Oakenfold,

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, and Kadebostany.

FIFA-licensed festivals and public viewing

FIFA sets up official Fan Festivals and owns the trademark. It also licenses other formats of fan events and public viewing. Under the new International FIFA Fan Fest licensing model, introduced in 2022, FIFA partners can launch local Fan Festivals in strict accordance with FIFA guidelines. FIFA also allows organizing non-official commercial and non-commercial public viewing areas (PVAs). Those private public PVAs should not use any FIFA branding or suggest any official link with the FIFA World Cup trademark, though the World Cup theme is allowed. The funds raised through licensing commercial public viewing areas are allocated to various social development programs via FIFA-affiliated bodies. In 2006, the funds were donated to SOS Children's Villages and the official 2006 World Cup charity campaign "Six villages for 2006", the profits of the 2010 World Cup were used to rebuild 20 football centers in

as a part of FIFA's "20 Centres for 2010" campaign. In 2014, the licensing fees went to community organizations that use football as a catalyst for social development a part of FIFA Football for Hope social development program.

Gallery

File:FIFA Fan Fest - Sydney 1.jpg, The giant screen being set up at

, 2010. File:FIFA Fan Fest - Sydney 2.jpg, The main screen at Darling Harbour during the Serbia V Ghana match, 2010. File:FIFA Fan Fest - Sydney 3.jpg, One of the screens set up at Darling Harbour during the Germany V Australia game, located in front of the Sydney Convention and Exhibition Centre, 2010. File:FIFA Fan Fest Paris June 2010.jpg, The Fan Fest in Trocadéro, Paris, 2010. File:FIFA FAN FEST RIO DE JANEIRO 2010.JPG, Fans during the

third-place match between Germany and Uruguay at the FIFA Fan Fest Arena in Copacabana Beach,

. File:Fan fest Brasília.jpg, 2014 Fan Fest in

, during the opening match Brazil V Croatia. File:FIFA Fan Fest Rio de Janeiro 05.jpg, Chile national football team supporters at Rio de Janeiro Fan Fest, 2014. File:Fifa Fan Fest - Rio de Janeiro 05.jpg, Belgian fans cheering at Rio de Janeiro Fan Fest, 2014. File:Fifa Fan Fest 25.jpg, Fans of different origins celebrate at Rio de Janeiro Fan Fest, 2014.

References

External links

FIFA Fan Fest 2018 Website

{{FIFA World Cup FIFA World Cup culture Fan Fest Association football fandom