At the 2025 Club World Cup, the world’s most celebrated footballers – from global icons to rising stars – are showcasing their elite athleticism and passion for the game. 

But as stars like Lionel Messi take center stage, there is one name that doesn’t belong anywhere near the pitch: Coca-Cola.  

Coca-Cola has partnered with global football body FIFA since 1978 and has been a ubiquitous presence at this year’s Club World Cup. FIFA’s football tournaments are a premier platform for showcasing health and fitness, while Coke is the largest global manufacturer of soft drinks, a top driver of the world’s twin epidemics: obesity and diabetes. Coca-Cola should not be sharing the spotlight with football players and using their achievements to “sportswash” away soda’s harms. 

It’s easy to see why not. Four of the five brands under Coke’s umbrella contain high levels of added sugar or artificial sweeteners. A single 20 oz bottle of Minute Maid Lemonade contains 67 grams of added sugar, over 100% of what a typical adult should consume in a day.

Liquid sugar is especially damaging. It causes dental caries, weight gain and increases many health risks. Our bodies don’t respond to liquid calories the same way as food calories: they do not make us feel full, leading us to consume more. 

Additionally, there’s increasing scientific evidence to suggest sugar is addictive: it affects the brain in a manner similar to cocaine and can lead to increasing intake, withdrawal and cravings.

The health harms of sugary drinks start young. Big Soda companies hook kids on their products through pervasive marketing tactics used in schools, during kids’ sports and on screens. As a result, over half of American children consume sugary drinks daily. And because dietary behaviors set in childhood track into adulthood, these early preferences set kids up for lifetimes of unhealthy eating. 

Big Soda also devastates our environment. Along with PepsiCo, Coke is one of the largest plastic polluters in the world. According to the University of California, per liter, soda uses 27 times more water and produces 11 times more greenhouse gas emissions than the equivalent amount of tap water.  

Yet, Big Soda has tried to frame itself as “part of the solution.” For decades, it’s promoted physical activity as a solution to obesity, ignoring data that it’s nearly impossible to out-exercise a bad diet. Beverage companies have interfered with scientific research and professional nutritional organizations, obfuscating the true health impacts of their products. And by positioning themselves as “helpful,” they have actively fought against public policies to reduce sugary drink consumption.

Along with “sports” and “health washing,” Big Soda employs “greenwashing,” or framing damaging products as helping, not harming, the environment. At the 2024 Olympic Games, where Coca-Cola was a leading sponsor, the soda giant claimed to be an environmental champion by halving the number of plastic bottles used at previous Olympics.

 While seemingly offering nine million drinks in reuseable, returnable eco-cups, 75% of these drinks came from plastic bottles poured into eco-cups. At best, this type of “greenwashing” is misleading to consumers and at worst, threatens to exacerbate the pollution crisis.

These companies also use emotion to push product sales. Coke’s 2022 World Cup advertisement featured people from around the world celebrating amid a flurry of confetti, which outwardly has nothing to do with soda. Coke chose to capitalize on the emotions the World Cup incites: hope, joy and a sense of social connection that is increasingly rare. It profits from this emotional appeal by selling us products that are harmful for our health and planet. 

Football is bigger than ever. The 2022 FIFA World Cup drew a cumulative audience of over 5 billion, with the final alone watched by 1.5 million people. With this massive reach comes increased responsibility to engage in ethical, transparent practices that don’t cause health and environmental harm. If we expect our athletes to play fair, so should FIFA. 

But the tide is turning. The Kick Big Soda Out of Sport campaign, led by global health advocates and organizations, is mounting an opposition to Big Soda’s sports sponsorships. As the 2025 Club World Cup games are being played across the U.S., the Kick Big Soda Out movement is demanding FIFA end its partnership with Coca-Cola. Over 350,000 people, alongside 97 health and environmental organizations have already pledged their support. 

The spotlight isn’t only on the players—it’s on FIFA too. Will it continue to hijack the global stage for profit, or will it take a stand for the health of fans, players and the planet? 

The facts are clear. It’s time to ban Big Soda in sport. 

Lindsey Smith Taillie, PhD, is an associate professor in the Department of Nutrition at the Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. She is a nutrition epidemiologist focused on designing and evaluating healthy food policies.

Image Credits: Vital Strategies.