According to Greenlight Analytics, both the 2026 FIFA World Cup Final and Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey achieved major success despite targeting the same core audience.
While The Odyssey is estimated to have earned around $125 million during its opening weekend, the World Cup Final is projected to attract 1.8 billion viewers worldwide.
Greenlight Analytics found that adult sports fans in the United States are 6% more likely to attend theatrical movie screenings and 3% more likely to watch streaming content than the average consumer. In the final tracking wave conducted one day before the film’s release, men aged 35 and older showed the highest awareness of The Odyssey, while men under 35 led in overall interest, theatrical intent, and willingness to pay.
The research also showed that 67% of the sports fan audience is male, with this group being 31% more likely than average to follow the FIFA Men’s World Cup. Frequent moviegoers—the audience studios prioritize most—were also among the viewers closely following the tournament.
Awareness of The Odyssey rose from 25% in July 2025 to 44% around the Super Bowl, eventually reaching 58% ahead of its theatrical release. During the World Cup group stage in June, however, the film experienced a temporary plateau in awareness and theatrical intent. As the tournament reached its highest-viewed matches, Universal’s marketing campaign regained momentum, resulting in the film’s largest week-over-week increase in awareness throughout the entire tracking period.
Greenlight Analytics concluded that today’s films compete not only with other theatrical releases, but also with major global events such as the FIFA World Cup for audience attention.
