By Lisa Lundeen, EVP, Account Direction, Sparks
Brands have never invested more heavily in experiences. From immersive pop-ups and flagship events to sponsorship activations and fan festivals, experiential marketing has become one of the industry’s fastest-growing investments. The 2026 FIFA World Cup provided one of the largest global stages for this shift. Across 16 host cities, brands didn’t simply compete for visibility inside stadiums. They created fan festivals, hospitality programs, interactive brand experiences and city-wide activations designed to engage millions of supporters before, during and long after the final whistle.
The brands that stood out weren’t necessarily those with the biggest footprint, but those that created experiences people genuinely value. But while experiences have become bigger, more spectacular and more shareable, many still fall short of delivering what marketers ultimately need: belief.
This is the challenge facing today’s CMOs. Awareness has become relatively easy to generate but convincing people has become far harder. Recent Harris Poll research commissioned by Sparks’ parent brand, The Freeman Company, into what has been termed the “Belief Gap” highlights the scale of this issue. In fact, nearly three quarters of marketers say there is now a measurable gap between people recognizing a brand and genuinely believing in it, while almost half identify the lack of meaningful in-person experiences as one of the primary reasons that gap exists.
For brands investing millions into live experiences, that’s an important shift. Success can no longer be judged by attendance figures, reach or social impressions alone. Trust has become a commercial performance metric in its own right because trust is what ultimately drives purchase and loyalty.
Creating an Impressive Event is No Longer Enough
Consumers have become exceptionally good at filtering marketing messages. They can recognize when an experience exists simply to generate content, versus when it has been designed to genuinely add real value. For example, the World Cup fans won’t remember sponsors simply because they appeared on perimeter boards. They’ll remember the brands that helped them navigate a host city more easily, created welcoming places to gather with fellow supporters or gave them access to experiences they couldn’t have had otherwise.
Trust isn’t created through a single headline momentum, it’s accumulated through hundreds of small decisions that together make a brand feel authentic and reliable. However, trust is harder to earn than ever before.
Why the Physical World Matters More Than Ever
Ironically, as AI transforms marketing and digital content becomes easier than ever to create, physical experiences become even more valuable. People are increasingly questioning what they see online. We’re now aware that images can be generated, testimonials can be fabricated and content can be personalized at scale.
But real experiences are much harder to fake. Being able to try a product, ask questions, meet experts and experience a brand firsthand gives audiences something digital channels often struggle to provide, confidence. Major sporting events amplify this effect. While millions have followed the 2026 World Cup through digital channels, the fans who have experienced a host city in person, whether visiting official fan festivals, brand activations or community viewing events, will leave with memories built through real interactions that simply can’t be replicated on a screen.
However, experiential marketing shouldn’t replace digital, but instead be used as a tool to strengthen it. It gives people tangible proof behind the messages they’ve already seen elsewhere. That distinction matters because people don’t simply want information. They want reassurance.
Community Creates Credibility
The desire for shared experiences is strong and cuts across all areas of people’s lives. Shared experiences help create a feeling of community. Importantly for brands, communities help create loyalty. When people witness others choosing and endorsing a brand it builds trust, and live experiences create the social proof of physical attendance. Being part of a crowd and observing other people’s response, reinforces one’s own; it generates a sense that the brand is valued by ‘people like me’.
Whether it’s thousands of developers gathering at Google I/O or customers attending a product launch, or fans coming together during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, communities reinforce belief because people see others investing their own time and attention. The energy of thousands of fans sharing a match, celebrating together in a fan zone or participating in brand-led experiences creates a powerful sense of belonging that extends naturally to the brands enabling those moments.
These communities don’t simply generate content; they generate confidence.
Investing in Quality to Build Trust
In the world of brand experiences expectations are high as people want a show. Brands and attendees look for something unexpected and unique. It’s not just about novelty, or a constant desire to out-do previous events. When a brand invests in a high-quality physical experience, it signals commitment. The World Cup has raised expectations even further. With supporters travelling from around the world, every interaction, from queue management and accessibility to hospitality and digital integration, have shaped perceptions of the brands involved. In environments like these, operational excellence becomes brand building.
Designing Trust Intentionally
Trust cannot be treated as a by-product of a successful event. It needs to be designed into every stage of the experience. That means understanding what audiences need to believe before they buy, identifying the moments that can reinforce those beliefs, and ensuring every interaction consistently delivers against the brand promise.
As marketing continues to evolve, the most successful activations won’t simply create viral moments; they’ll create lasting belief. They’ll leave attendees feeling that a brand made their journey easier, their celebration richer or their experience more memorable. Those are the moments people remember long after the event ends.
Because in an age where attention is fragmented and choice is endless, trust isn’t simply an emotional outcome. It’s a commercial one.
