Kings League, the digital-focused soccer venture launched by former Spanish star Gerard Piqué, has announced several new partners for its season-ending Kings World Cup Clubs 2026 tournament.
The tournament, which closes out the 2025-26 season, is due to be held in Milan, Italy, from July 2026 to August 1 and will see the top 16 teams from Kings League’s seven regional competitions – Spain, Mexico, Italy, Brazil, France, Germany, and MENA – compete to become champions.
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Days before the tournament starts, Kings League unveiled four new brand partners, including soft drinks giant Coca-Cola, isotonic sports drink Powerade, eatery Wingstop, and video game Exodus, which become official partners of the event, as will a range of existing Kings League sponsors, including Visa, Adidas, JD Sports, and Fortnite.
As well as gaining visibility during the tournament, the brands will activate their partnerships in ways designed to engage the competition’s fans through original content, digital experiences, and on-site activities in Milan.
Exodus, a game being released next year by publisher Wizards of the Coast, will launch a ‘Time Dilation’ card that will enable teams to reduce or increase the time left on the match clock. The activation complements the ‘Secret Cards’ that are awarded at the start of each match and contain ‘power-ups’ that can be used mid-match.
The other partners, meanwhile, will gain special branding assets linked to key moments of games including goal-scoring moments (Coca-Cola), hydration breaks (Powerade), and the MVP award (Wingstop).
As at previous major Kings League tournaments, Adidas will roll out a series of activations including a “F50 vs Predator” challenge focused on its two boot brands.
Kings League chief revenue officer Mayan Scharf said, “The Kings World Cup Clubs has become one of the most exciting opportunities for brands looking to connect with a new generation of sports fans.
“Our audience is young, highly engaged and deeply invested in the competition, making Kings League a powerful platform for meaningful brand storytelling.
“We're proud to welcome this group of partners for the 2026 tournament, and we’re looking forward to seeing them bring creative activations that enhance the fan experience both in Milan and for millions watching around the world.”
The partnership announcement comes a week after Kings League announced sports streaming service DAZN as the rightsholder to the tournament across a swathe of markets.
Under the deal, DAZN will provide free-to-air coverage of all 27 matches across Europe, Canada, Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Oceania during the tournament, building on its role as the primary global broadcast rightsholder for the competition in 2026.
As part of that agreement, the streaming service acquired a range of Kings League rights for 2026, including the Kings World Cup Nations event, which took place in Brazil in January, as well as local Kings League competitions in Spain, Italy, and Germany.
Other broadcasters and streaming platforms set to air the tournament include On Sports (Egypt), ESPN/Disney+ (Latin America, Brazil, Caribbean), CazeTV and Xsports (Brazil), MBC Action/Shahid (MENA), OneSport (Israel), and LiveMode (Portugal).
There are also broadcast agreements in place with Japan’s ABEMA for three friendly matches featuring the Japanese team Murash FC that will play at the tournament, with OneFootball covering global rights for on-demand clips and highlights.
The rights deals have been put in place to increase the tournament's visibility and will sit alongside the Kings League’s coverage of the competition, which will see streams distributed via the Kings League’s social media platforms including YouTube and Twitch.
The teams competing in the tournament will be led by some of soccer’s biggest names, including recent World Cup winner Lamine Yamal (La Capital CF – Kings League Spain), Neymar Jr. (Furia FC – Kings League Brazil), James Rodríguez (Atlético Parceros – Kings League México), and Hasan Salihamidžić (No Rules FC – Kings League Germany).
They will be joined by teams led by well-known influencers and content creators, including Blur (Stallions – Kings League Lottomatica.sport Italy), Dr7bh (DR7 – Kings League MENA), Gaules (G3X – Kings League Brazil), Ibai Llanos (Porcinos FC – Kings League Spain), and Juan Guarnizo (Aniquiladores FC – Kings League México).
Last year’s edition saw a final between Spain’s Los Troncos FC and Porcinos FC at Paris La Défense Arena, with Los Troncos securing the title.
