Tag Archives: world cup

Pepsi Max’s New Can Turns Blue When It’s Cold Enough to Drink

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Most of us don’t think twice about the can we grab from the fridge. You reach, you pop, you drink. But Pepsi Max is betting that at least some of us will stop, look twice, and maybe even squeal a little when the can in our hand starts changing colour right before our eyes.

That’s the premise behind Pepsi Max’s new Perfect Chilled variant, launched as part of the brand’s wider Pepsi Football Nation campaign ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Out of 86 million football-themed cans hitting shelves across the UK, only 150,000 carry something extra: thermochromic ink that begins to shift at 12°C and turns a full, vivid blue at 8°C, the temperature Pepsi considers optimal for drinking. In other words, the can tells you when it’s ready.

Design: Pepsi

The design itself is clean and considered. The 330ml can wears the classic black-and-white pentagon pattern of a traditional football, a smart visual shorthand that doesn’t need any explanation. It’s immediately recognisable, seasonally relevant, and works beautifully with the colour-change mechanic. The graphic language is minimal without being plain, and the blue reveal against the black-and-white base is genuinely satisfying. When that blue kicks in, it’s not subtle. It’s the kind of visual shift that makes you want to show someone standing next to you.

The Perfect Chilled variant also doubles as a prize trigger. Finding one means you’re entered into a competition where prizes include £5,000 towards a home entertainment bundle, football tickets, Pepsi Football Nation merchandise, and vouchers. So the colour change does two things at once: it signals peak drinking temperature, and it reveals whether you’re holding a winner. That’s a neat piece of design thinking, making a single moment do a lot of heavy lifting without feeling gimmicky.

I’ll admit I have a soft spot for thermochromic packaging. It made waves in mainstream consumer consciousness back in the 2000s with Coors Light’s cold-activated mountains, and various brands have been picking it up ever since. But Pepsi’s version feels more purposeful than most. Rather than just being a party trick, the temperature cue here is tied to a genuine product promise: that Pepsi Max is best at 8°C, and the can will tell you when you’ve hit it. That’s functional design, not just fun design, and the difference matters.

The scarcity piece is where the campaign gets genuinely clever. At 150,000 Perfect Chilled cans out of 86 million, the odds aren’t outrageous, but they’re not guaranteed either. It creates just enough tension to make you actually look at the packaging, which is something brands have been desperately trying to achieve in the era of eyes-down, scroll-while-shopping retail behaviour. When your product can make someone pause on the way to the checkout, you’ve done something right.

Pepsi didn’t stop at the can, either. The campaign includes a browser extension for Chrome and Firefox that replaces the word “soccer” with “football” on any webpage, a nod to the ongoing, completely unresolvable debate that football fans clearly feel strongly enough about to install software over. It’s a small touch, but it speaks to the same sensibility running through the whole campaign: know your audience, and then give them something that feels made for them specifically.

Packaging rarely gets the cultural credit it deserves. It’s the thing you throw away, the design you never frame, the object that lives in your hand for about four minutes before it goes in the recycling. But at its best, it does what this Pepsi Max can does: it turns a routine moment into a small, unexpected experience. For a product that’s been on shelves since the 1990s, making a can feel exciting again is no small feat. And if the price of admission is putting your Pepsi in the fridge before a football match, well, you were probably doing that anyway.

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NESCAFÉ Just Replaced Beer at Your World Cup Party for $10

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The world’s most-watched sporting event is about to kick off in less than a month. This means that World Cup watch parties are probably being set up in various households for football fans who won’t actually be able to make it to the stadiums in the U.S., Canada, or Mexico. While beer is probably the drink of choice for most of these events, NESCAFÉ wants to begin a new tradition for those who want to have a livelier, but probably safer, discussion amongst family and friends.

The coffee brand is introducing the NESCAFÉ Espresso Keg, a limited-edition World Cup special designed to help you get into the “Third Half.” This is a ritual they want to start, and caffeine may be the perfect companion as you get talking about the 90-minute-and-change match you just finished watching. They believe that “the conversation doesn’t end after the game,” and it should be helped along over a cup of coffee.

Designer: NESCAFÉ

The keg actually looks like your usual beer keg, but instead of dispensing beer, you’ll have coffee pouring out of it as you discuss every goal, call (or non-call), and every exciting and controversial thing that happened during the match. Each package comes with a 5L keg and two 10oz bottles of NESCAFÉ Espresso Concentrate in Black and Sweet Vanilla flavors. In case you don’t know how to mix it up, it also comes with instructions and recipes so you can “brew” the perfect cup for your Third Half. You’ll be able to serve around 20 cups with the package, so you may need to stock up on more concentrate if you have a larger crowd attending your watch party.

There is a special bi-cultural campaign to promote this limited-edition keg. We’re not sure why Canada was left out of the equation, but U.S. soccer legend Landon Donovan and Mexican fútbol icon Luis García are the faces of the campaign, representing their two countries. It’s priced at $10 as a tribute to Donovan’s jersey number, the iconic number 10 he wore while bringing glory to the U.S. Men’s National Team. To make it even more of a must-have item, there will be three separate drops, and the last one is this coming June 10, just a few days before the start of the World Cup.

And it turns out the concept isn’t just a clever marketing angle, as the numbers actually back it up. According to NESCAFÉ, 73% of soccer fans already drink coffee during game time, making it a surprisingly natural fit at any watch party table. Rob Marsh, NESCAFÉ’s Marketing Director, summed it up well: “We’ve coined a new half, ‘The Third Half,’ to represent the moments after and in-between games when passionate debates peak. Like any good conversation, these often take place over a beverage, making our coffee and the Nescafé Espresso Keg the perfect fuel to keep things flowing.”

It’s a fun and genuinely refreshing idea, especially for watch parties where not everyone is reaching for a beer, particularly during those early-morning kick-offs that come with a global tournament spanning multiple time zones. The Espresso Keg gives you that same communal, tap-style energy of a classic keg party, just with a serious caffeine boost instead of a headache waiting to happen. Whether you’re a black coffee purist or someone who loves a touch of Sweet Vanilla in their cup, there’s a flavor to match every personality and every strongly-held opinion about the offside rule.

The limited-edition nature of this release makes it all the more exciting. With earlier drops reportedly selling out quickly, demand has clearly been there. If you missed the first rounds, don’t sleep on that final June 10 drop. It’s the kind of collectible that doubles as a genuinely useful party accessory, a rare combination at any price point, let alone $10.

If you’re serious about hosting the ultimate World Cup watch party this summer, the NESCAFÉ Espresso Keg might just be the most unexpected and delightful centerpiece you didn’t know you needed. So mark the date, set up those fold-out chairs, hang your team’s flag, and get ready to debate every single moment of the beautiful game, one perfectly poured cup at a time.

The post NESCAFÉ Just Replaced Beer at Your World Cup Party for $10 first appeared on Yanko Design.

adidas Just Made the Best World Cup Drop for Your Dog

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adidas dropped a pet jersey collection for the FIFA World Cup 2026 and I genuinely cannot decide if it’s brilliant or completely unhinged. Maybe both. That tension is precisely what makes it worth paying attention to.

The collection features scaled-down versions of the official home kits for four national federations: Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, and Japan. Each jersey is made with interlock fabric, finished with heat-transferred federation crests and the adidas logo, and sized to fit pets of varying builds. On paper, it reads like a novelty item, the kind of thing that gets a cute Instagram moment and then disappears. But the more I think about it, the more I suspect adidas is operating on a level most people aren’t fully registering yet.

Designer: adidas

This isn’t the brand’s first move into pet fashion. They released a pet tracksuit collection in late 2025 and followed it up with Lunar New Year designs in early 2026. The World Cup drop is the third chapter, and it’s by far the most culturally loaded. Attaching pet merchandise to the biggest sporting event on the planet isn’t a gimmick. It’s a calculated bet on where consumer culture is right now. People don’t just watch the World Cup. They host parties, coordinate outfits, wear matching kits with their kids, and increasingly treat their pets as full participants in the whole ritual. adidas saw that behavioral shift and decided to meet the moment rather than wait for someone else to.

The design fidelity is where I think they actually earned some genuine respect here. These aren’t generic jerseys with a crest slapped on. The Argentina kit carries the iconic Albiceleste stripes. The Mexico jersey features the Piedra del Sol, the same Aztec sun stone print embedded in the human version. The Colombia and Japan kits follow the same logic: faithfully reproduce the visual DNA of the official tournament kits, just at a smaller scale. That level of attention to detail signals that adidas isn’t treating the pet market as an afterthought. They’re treating it as a legitimate extension of the product line, and that’s a meaningful distinction.

Whether that’s the right move commercially is a separate conversation. The pet economy has been growing steadily for years, and premium pet accessories have become a real, serious category. But there’s also a risk of diluting what a World Cup kit means. A national team jersey carries history, identity, and a specific kind of weight. Putting it on your Corgi is either a celebration of that connection or a softening of it, depending on how you feel about football culture to begin with. I lean toward the former, mostly because fandom has always been about emotional inclusion rather than gatekeeping.

What adidas is really selling here is a shared experience. The visual of a fan and their dog in matching kits is immediately legible as a moment of joy, and that’s not nothing. The FIFA World Cup 2026 runs from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, which means there’s an entire summer of viewing parties and matchday gatherings where this collection becomes exactly the kind of organic conversation starter that no marketing budget can easily manufacture. You don’t need a big campaign when your product photographs that naturally.

The collection became available on May 1st across North America, Latin America, and selected markets in Asia including Japan, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Indonesia, through adidas stores, retail partners, and online. The timing gives fans about six weeks to get their pets game-ready before the opening match. That’s enough runway to make it feel intentional rather than rushed. Is it the most important design release of 2026? Obviously not. But it’s a genuinely smart piece of brand work that understands its cultural moment, respects its source material, and executes with more craft than the premise suggests it deserves. Sometimes that’s enough. Sometimes that’s actually the point.

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This $699 FIFA World Cup Phone Is a Limited-Edition Collector’s Dream

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The FIFA World Cup 2026 edition is just a few months away, so we can expect that these first few months of the year, we’ll get a lot of product tie-ups and merchandise. After all, the world’s most-watched sports event will be held in the US, Canada, and Mexico. If you plan to watch any of the matches in person or you’ll just be sitting pretty from the comfort of your own home while streaming, Motorola’s newest smartphone may be the device that you need to enjoy the game more.

The Motorola razr FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition is a limited-edition collectible device that celebrates the first-ever 48-team FIFA World Cup. It is a mobile phone that’s designed for soccer fans who are excited about the upcoming tournament and for anyone who loves things where technology meets sports culture.

Designer: Motorola

This special razr edition boasts a stunning vibrant green shade reminiscent of a football pitch where all the action takes place. It has a soft-touch vegan leather back cover with multicolor geometric patterns, showing off fluid motion representing energy and inclusivity. Since this is a foldable phone, the pattern is designed to flow seamlessly across the device, giving you a unified, continuous look whether it’s folded or open.

The main display is a 6.9″ Foldable AMOLED screen with HDR10+, FHD+ resolution, adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz, and stunning 3000 nits peak brightness. This should be perfect for when you’re watching the football matches on your smartphone. The external display has a 3.6″ pOLED with adaptive refresh rate up to 90Hz and 1700 nits peak brightness. You can stay connected with the latest scores and notifications even without having to open your phone.

If you’ll be watching the matches live, Motorola wants to make sure your camera system is perfect for those match-day memories. It has a 50MP main camera with a 13MP Ultrawide + Macro Vision Camera with a 120° field of view and a 32MP front camera for those reaction shots. It also has some creative features like Auto Night Vision, 4K UHD video at 30fps, Adaptive Stabilization, and Horizon Lock to get smoother videos. The main camera even includes OIS (Optical Image Stabilization) and Pantone™ Validated Color, ensuring your photos look professional and true to life.

Under the hood, the razr FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition runs on Android™ 15 with a MediaTek Dimensity 7400X chipset and comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage in the US and Canada. The 4500mAh battery will keep you powered throughout the day, from kickoff to the final whistle, and when you do need to charge, the 30W TurboPower™ charging gets you back in action quickly. There’s also 15W wireless charging for added convenience.

What really makes this device stand out is its durability. It features a titanium-reinforced hinge and IP48 dust and water protection, meaning it can handle submersion in up to 1.5 meters of fresh water for up to 30 minutes. Whether you’re celebrating a goal with friends or caught in unexpected rain while heading to a viewing party, this phone is built to last. The audio experience shouldn’t be overlooked either. With dual stereo speakers tuned by Dolby Atmos® and three microphones, you’ll get immersive sound whether you’re watching matches, making video calls with fellow fans, or recording your own commentary.

Of course, since this is a special edition smartphone, you get FIFA World Cup features that only this phone has. You have exclusive wallpapers to celebrate the tournament, an official tournament theme ringtone, and a FIFA Watermark feature that you can add to your photos and videos before sharing them on your socials.

The Motorola razr FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition will be available starting February 12, 2026, with an MSRP of $699.99 in the United States and $999.99 CAD in Canada. In the US, Verizon will serve as the exclusive carrier partner during the introductory month, and unlocked models will be available on motorola.com, with Amazon.com availability coming later.

For collectors and football enthusiasts alike, this limited-edition device represents more than just a smartphone. It’s a piece of World Cup history you can carry with you. With its eye-catching design, powerful features, and exclusive FIFA content, the razr FIFA World Cup 26™ Edition is the perfect companion for experiencing the tournament’s excitement, whether you’re in the stadium or streaming from home. If you want to showcase your passion for the beautiful game while staying connected in style, this collectible device deserves a spot in your hands and your collection.

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This 2,842-Piece LEGO Is the Closest You’ll Get to the FIFA World Cup

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I’ve accepted the fact that in my lifetime, my home country will probably never win the World Cup, seeing as we’ve never come close to qualifying for one. So the next best thing would be to see the World Cup trophy in person, although that is also still a long shot given that the trophy tour will never pass by this side of the world. So the next best thing would be to see a replica of some sort and as I’m a LEGO fan as well, this newest build would be the perfect thing to own. It’s one of those rare occasions where my love for collecting LEGO sets and my passion for football intersect in the most beautiful way possible.

The LEGO® Editions FIFA World Cup™ Official Trophy (43020) is for the soccer (or football, as the rest of the world calls it) fan in you that would love to display the trophy on your shelf. It’s meant to hype up the 2026 World Cup tournament happening in the US, Canada, and Mexico in June-July 2026, which is one of, if not the world’s most popular sporting tournament. It’s a LEGO-fied replica of the trophy, featuring authentic details that capture the essence of the real thing. In case, like me, this is the closest you’ll ever come to actually touching this prestigious trophy, at least you can say you built it brick by brick with your own hands.

Designer: LEGO

Even though the World Cup is one of the most-watched sporting events every four years, drawing billions of viewers from around the globe, this is actually the first time that football fans will be able to build an official replica 1:1 scale model of the trophy. The iconic design features two human figures holding up the earth, symbolizing the global unity that football brings. The build is made up of 2,842 LEGO elements, making it a substantial and satisfying project that will keep you engaged for hours. What’s particularly impressive is that it has the highest number of gold-colored bricks used in a single LEGO set, giving it that authentic metallic sheen that makes the real trophy so mesmerizing under stadium lights.

The attention to detail is remarkable. The build also includes a printed plaque under the base which lists all the countries that have lifted the current trophy design since it was introduced in 1974. This includes legendary winners like Brazil, Germany, Argentina, France, and Italy. It’s a nice touch that adds historical context and makes the replica feel more authentic and commemorative. For collectors and football historians, this detail alone makes the set worth having.

You even get a special easter egg when you pull out the slip in a hidden compartment in the upper globe section. You’ll see the actual FIFA World Cup 2026 logo and a cute branded minifig holding up a mini trophy toy. Basically you get a small trophy within the trophy replica, kind of like an inception-style setup. You can pull out this mini scene and display it next to the trophy replica so you sort of get two kinds of decorations. It’s these thoughtful little surprises that LEGO is known for, and they really enhance the overall building experience and display value.

The building process itself is designed to be both challenging and rewarding. With nearly 3,000 pieces, you’ll need to set aside several hours to complete it, but the step-by-step instructions make it accessible even if you’re not a LEGO expert. The modular construction means you build from the base up, just like the journey teams take to reach the final. There’s something meditative about clicking those golden bricks into place, watching the trophy take shape before your eyes.

The main trophy itself measures around 14.5 inches high once finished, making it a substantial display piece that commands attention without overwhelming your space. It’s a perfect gift for kids aged 12 and above or adults like me who are fans of both the sport and LEGO builds. Whether you display it in your living room, office, or dedicated collection space, it’s sure to be a conversation starter, especially during World Cup season.

It will be available for purchase starting March 2026 in the lead up to the tournament, giving fans plenty of time to build and display it before the first match kicks off. LEGO also said they will be rolling out new products and experiences to celebrate this momentous tournament that will feature 48 teams, the most of any edition. This expansion makes the 2026 World Cup historic in its own right, and having this replica feels like owning a piece of that history.

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Saudi Arabia Is All Set To Construct The World’s Largest Sports Stadium

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Saudi Arabia has been unveiling quite a few impressive constructions and structures recently, and they don’t seem to be slowing down. They recently announced another project – a massive and impressive stadium that is supposed to be the world’s largest once constructed. It is designed to mimic a seed germinating in the desert. Populous unveiled the plans for the stadium called the King Salman Stadium and Masterplan. It will be located in Riyadh, near a big park area that is under construction at the moment.

Designer: Populous

The stadium will include a circular building consisting of segmented sections with green walls and green roof spaces. The roof will also include walking paths. It will be able to seat over 92,00o, making it the largest stadium in Saudi Arabia and one of the largest in the world. It will contain the main seating, a royal box, hospitality skyboxes, and lounges.

It will also hold 2,200 VIP seats and 300 “VVIP” seats. It will be integrated with internal screens, climbing walls, gardens, and an aquatics center with an Olympic-sized swimming pool, and a small athletic stadium. The stadium will also include a running track. The structure is heavily inspired by Saudi Arabia’s natural landscapes, and it will resemble seeds emerging from the Earth, thereby showcasing the country’s initiative to encourage sports participation.

“Inspiration for the design is drawn from Saudi Arabia’s mesmerizing natural landscape, with the symbolic concept of each venue within the masterplan representing a seed that germinates, cracks the earth, and emerges as a dynamic yet seemingly natural intervention,” said Populous. “The planting of these ‘seeds’ symbolizes Saudi Arabia’s commitment to nurturing and growing sports participation across the country, from the grassroots to the elite level.”

The stadium is expected to be completed in late 2029, and it will function as the primary headquarters for the national soccer team. The King Salman Stadium and Masterplan is a part of a whole bunch of stadiums that are currently being constructed in Saudi Arabia – they’re being designed by Populous as well.

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