Lenovo has become the official technology partner for FIFA, which includes the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, as well as the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
This announcement was made during Lenovo’s Tech World innovation event in Seattle on Tuesday.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino stated that this partnership will enhance fan experiences and make data more accessible for fans and teams.
“At FIFA, we are committed to growing the game globally and making football accessible for all — and we are excited to welcome Lenovo to our journey, and to work with them to implement technologies, innovations and programmes that spread our sport. Data and technology combined helps us to know fans better,” he said.
The 2026 World Cup is set to take place from June 11 to July 19 across 16 cities in North America. This tournament will also expand from 32 to 48 teams.
The 2027 Women’s World Cup will include 32 teams, but the specific dates and host cities in Brazil have yet to be confirmed.
Jeff Shafer, Lenovo’s head of corporate marketing, mentioned that there have been several meetings with FIFA about how artificial intelligence can help teams and fans understand the data generated during matches, but any ideas or updates are still in the planning phase.
“Technology and football will absolutely enhance the experience for viewers at a specific level. That’s stuff that we’re working on right now. But we already, I think, have some really amazing and interesting ideas brewing,” Shafer said.
Lenovo will provide ThinkPad laptops and tablets, as well as Motorola mobile phones, to the teams, FIFA staff, and various organizing committees in the host nations.
FIFA collected a large amount of data during the recent World Cup tournaments, which included detailed match reports that analyzed every aspect of the game.
Previously, data was limited to possession percentages and shots, but now players wear devices that track their movements, and soccer balls have chips in them. This allows for analysis of a team’s offensive formation and assists referees with offside calls.
The data collected can also be used during matches for graphics on television or to share statistics in the stadium. FIFA has a six-member technical study group that analyzes data during tournaments and provides insights and observations.
Shafer mentioned that many upgrades to improve the fan experience will initially focus on helping teams and players analyze data.
“Technology can level the playing field. The data is already there, but you’ve got some disparity between the haves and have nots within global football,” he said. “If we can provide technology that gives one or two people the ability to analyze data with some sort of competitive equality to those countries that have 10 or 15 people able to do that, it really brings a lot to the table.”
Lenovo joining as a FIFA partner comes alongside recent sponsorship deals from Bank of America, Lays, and Verizon.
“Lenovo is proud to support FIFA’s vision of leveraging technology to elevate the game, enhance the fan experience worldwide, and foster innovation that levels the playing field.
We’re excited that our cutting-edge technology and AI innovation will take centre stage in the upcoming tournaments, demonstrating to the world the transformative power of smarter technology,” said Lenovo chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang in a statement.
