The World Cup is the one event that stops the entire world at once, and in 2026 it became as much a stage for brands and creators as for the players.
Across the full tournament $10.12bn in Earned Media Value was driven by more than 24,000 creators.
The verdict from the data is clear: the brands that won weren’t the biggest spenders, they were the ones fans and creators actually posted about.
The top 100 media and entertainment brands across video streaming, audio streaming, and content creation generated $63.4B in total Earned Media Value in 2025, up +7.0% YoY. Growth is uneven across sub-sectors, video streaming surged while audio streaming declined sharply, platform dynamics are shifting fast, and a handful of breakout brands are rewriting what influence looks like in entertainment.
TikTok grew +70.2% YoY and is rapidly closing the gap on YouTube as the dominant entertainment influence platform. YouTube remains #1 at $32.6B but declined -11.3%, while Instagram grew +4.4% to $13.3B. Facebook nearly doubled to $7.3B (+98.9%), making media and entertainment one of the few categories where four platforms are genuinely competing for share.
State of Influence Index 2026 now LIVE - Explore the creators, trends and platforms driving conversations