NEW YORK, March 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Teads Holding Co. (Nasdaq: TEAD) (“Teads” or the “Company”), the omnichannel outcomes platform, today released new global research showing how major sporting events capture audience attention across multiple screens before, during, and after games. The findings show that sports are no longer just live broadcasts, but extended moments of engagement that create meaningful opportunities for brands to drive real impact.
Key global findings include:
- 56% of sports viewers use a second screen while watching games
- 47% say seeing a brand advertise during sports moments strengthens their connection to that brand
- 49% are more likely to purchase when brands advertise consistently across multiple platforms
- 51% are open to brands they have not previously tried when discovered during sporting events
A rare moment of shared attention
Major sporting events continue to play a unique role in the media ecosystem, bringing together audiences at scale and creating culturally relevant moments that resonate beyond the game itself. Jarreau Brown, Brand Manager, Sprite Trademark at The Coca-Cola Company, commented:
“There are so many interesting moments that sports bring like scale, emotion, and shared attention. Attention is so fragmented now; actually having eyes on the same thing is really important.”
The research supports this view, showing that sports environments foster emotional engagement and brand openness across diverse audience groups, including Gen Z, Millennials, and affluent consumers.
Two in three fans watch major sporting events at home, creating a premium media setting where TV viewing meets active browsing and scrolling on other devices. Beyond traditional sports categories, 39% of fans globally say they trust brands not typically associated with sports, a figure that rises to 50% among Formula 1 viewers, highlighting how certain tournaments create even broader brand acceptance.
The shift to connected sports consumption
Viewer behavior reflects the shift to connected consumption. While 56% of fans globally use a second screen during games, this behavior intensifies significantly among basketball audiences, particularly NBA and NCAA March Madness viewers, where multi-screen activity peaks. This behavior extends beyond social interaction, with 30% shopping online during tournaments and 24% purchasing products related to the event.
Brand discovery frequently occurs in premium digital environments, including CTV, sports sites, and online news platforms. Audiences also report higher trust in advertising within sports and news contexts compared to social channels, reinforcing the importance of quality media environments.
Consistent cross-platform presence plays a decisive role in effectiveness. Nearly half of respondents say multi-screen advertising improves recall, and 49% report an increased likelihood to purchase when brands maintain cohesive exposure across TV and digital channels. Among Millennials, and similarly among FIFA World Cup viewers, purchase intent rises to 59%, underscoring the commercial impact of integrated strategies during culturally significant sporting moments.
Caroline Hugonenc, SVP, Data & Insights at Teads, said: “Sports moments have evolved into continuous attention ecosystems that extend well beyond the live event itself. Audiences move seamlessly across screens, creating multiple points of influence for brands. Our research shows that when advertisers align creative relevance with consistent cross-screen activation, sports moments become powerful drivers of business outcomes.”
The full report explores global audience behavior across major sporting events in 2026, offering insights into media consumption, trust, and the performance impact of omnichannel strategies. These findings will also be presented at IAB NewFronts by Dani Cushion, CMO at Teads, on March 25 at 10:15 AM EST.
For more information and to download the full report, visit here.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, which statements involve substantial risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements generally relate to possible or assumed future results of our business, financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, plans and objectives. You can generally identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “guidance,” “outlook,” “target,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “foresee,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions that concern our expectations, strategy, plans or intentions.
We have based these forward-looking statements largely on our current expectations and projections regarding future events and trends that we believe may affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including but not limited to: the risk that our market research and consumer trend analyses may not accurately predict future advertiser behavior or campaign performance; the risk that macroeconomic conditions may impact advertising spend around major sporting events; the highly competitive nature of the digital advertising industry; and the other important risks described in the section entitled “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed for the year ended December 31, 2025, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), which is available on our website at https://investors.teads.com/ and on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov.
Accordingly, you should not rely upon forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We cannot assure you that the results, events and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements will be achieved or occur, and actual results, events or circumstances could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
About Teads
Teads Holding Co. (“Teads”) (Nasdaq: TEAD) is a leading omnichannel advertising platform focused on driving outcomes for brand and performance advertisers across screens. With a focus on meaningful business outcomes for branding and performance objectives, Teads drives value by leveraging predictive AI technology to connect quality media, beautiful brand creative, and context-driven addressability and measurement. Teads is directly partnered with more than 10,000 publishers and 20,000 advertisers globally. The company is headquartered in New York, New York with a global team of around 1,700 people in 30+ countries.
For more information, visit http://www.teads.com.
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