Football creators bring the fans, but brands still need a plan

When it comes to brands partnering with football creators, the appeal is easy to understand. 

Creators keep the game going long after the final whistle through things like match analysis and debates about transfers. Their loyal fans return week after week to hear their opinions and join in the conversation.  

More and more brands are working with football creators to reach these football-mad communities, a trend that’s being seen in the industry at large. According to IAB UK, spending on creator partnerships across the UK market is expected to reach £1.2bn in 2026, up 26% from last year. 

But the problem is that some brands don’t establish what success should look like before a partnership begins. A video goes live, and the campaign report records how many people viewed it and engaged with it. Reporting often ends there, without assessing whether the partnership is delivering against the brand’s business objectives.

To turn likes and views into measurable growth, brands need to have a clear plan. That starts with choosing the right creator, giving fans a reason to get involved and agreeing what the partnership should achieve.

Find the right fit for your brand

Football fandom is a deeply personal thing. Fans might follow a specific creator for their sense of humour, their knowledge of the game or because they support the same club. Brands need to understand those connections before choosing a partner.

Follower numbers also provide only part of the picture – brands need to pay close attention to the conversations around the content. Do followers engage more with tactical analysis, football memes or discussions about player transfers? Does the creator interact meaningfully with their followers and what is that relationship like? Those details help establish whether the audience fits the brand and how a partnership could be beneficial.

Baller League’s recent launch in the US illustrates why brands should look beyond the biggest names. During the six-a-side football league’s tournament in Miami, Colombian creator WESTCOL drew more livestream viewers than league president iShowSpeed. WESTCOL had 10 million followers across his social accounts; iShowSpeed had 165 million.

Baller League CEO and co-founder Felix Starck also distinguishes between creators who attract viewers and athletes who bring cultural credibility. The lesson in this is that brands need to be clear about the role each partner will play, whether that is reaching a niche fan community or strengthening the brand’s association with football.

Brands could work with a creator who follows a particular club to develop a regular feature for its supporters. A brand seeking customers in a particular city could partner with a creator active in the local football community.

The creator should help shape the campaign and its objectives. The brand is paying for the creator’s understanding of their followers, so it should give them room to make content those fans enjoy.

Make your brand part of the experience

Once a brand has chosen a creator to partner with, they need to decide what they can offer football fans. That could be entertaining content, access to players, a fan event or a regular feature followers enjoy.

Unilever’s House of Fresh showed how a brand can give creators experiences that become content for their followers. During the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the company invited more than 2,100 creators, influencers and sports personalities to events in Mexico City, New York and Miami. Guests could meet football stars, customise jerseys and take part in football-related activities.

Creators filmed their experiences and shared them with followers, bringing Unilever’s brands into the content. Creators working with Amazon also shared posts with shopping links allowing viewers to buy the limited-edition products they featured.

Football gaming offers great creator opportunities as well. US broadband and TV provider Xfinity worked with EA Sports FC 25 creators to promote kits players could use in the game and extra rewards for Xfinity customers. This gave creators something relevant to share with their followers, who already enjoyed playing the game.  

The important thing is that fans who like a creator still need a reason to choose the brand paying for the partnership. 

Giving fans a reason to get involved is the first step. The brand and creator also need to decide what they want people to do after seeing the content. 

If the goal is to drive sales, viewers should be able to find and buy the product easily. For campaigns focused on awareness, brands need to establish whether viewers understand what the product is offering. Shopping links and discount codes can help track sales. Surveys can also be used to determine if viewers remember the brand and whether they would be interested in buying. 

All of this needs to be in place before the work goes live, and enough time needs to be scheduled afterwards to assess the results. Both sides can then decide if anything needs changing and whether the partnership is worth continuing.

Brands are paying for access to a community that creators have spent years building. They need a clear plan for earning a place in that community and making that investment worthwhile.

Abraham Charles is founder and CEO of each&everyone