Merlins Sports officially launches at the FIFA World Cup 2026.
Not inside the stadiums, but in the streets — where the real energy of the game lives.
We have always believed that sport does not begin at kickoff, nor does it end with the final whistle. Sport lives in cafés, on sidewalks, in late-night debates, spontaneous chants, pickup games, family traditions, and the quiet moments before crowds arrive. Fans are everything. Their passion is the heartbeat of the game.
From the Screen to the Streets
As Netflix launches FIFA gaming exclusively on its platform, Merlins Sports activates a parallel, real-world experience — connecting digital fandom to human connection.
Our Merlins Street Teams will be deployed across three iconic World Cup cities:
- Vancouver
- Toronto
- Mexico City
This is Screen to Streets in its purest form.
Street Teams will meet fans where they already gather — fan zones, public squares, cafés, transit hubs, pop-up pitches, and unexpected corners of each city. The mission is simple: capture the soul of the World Cup through the people who live it.
Live, Raw, Unfiltered
Every day during the tournament, Merlins Street Teams will broadcast live on YouTube, turning the streets into a global stage.
No scripts.
No polished studio walls.
Just authentic moments — voices, faces, emotions — happening in real time.
Fans won’t just watch the World Cup.
They’ll become part of it.
World Cup 2026 Micro Dramas
Alongside the live broadcasts, Merlins Sports will premiere our FIFA World Cup 2026 Micro Dramas — short-form, cinematic stories captured on the streets during the tournament.
These micro dramas explore:
- First-time World Cup fans experiencing the atmosphere
- Families passing football traditions across generations
- Street debates, rivalries, joy, heartbreak, and hope
- The cultural identity of each host city through football
Each piece is designed to be immediate, emotional, and timeless — snapshots of a World Cup seen from the ground up.
Why This Matters
The World Cup is more than matches.
It is movement, migration, music, language, food, and shared belief.
Merlins Sports exists to document that space between sport and humanity — the moments cameras usually miss, but fans never forget.
FIFA World Cup 2026 marks the beginning of a new chapter for Merlins Sports:
a global platform built on storytelling, community, and real fan energy — from the screen to the streets, and out into the world.
— Merlins Sports Entertainment
