Television sales in UAE double as football frenzy grips country
Television sales in the UAE have doubled with the Fifa World Cup Qatar set to begin in a few days time.
While millions of people will flock to Qatar and Dubai in the coming weeks to watch the world's biggest football event, millions of fans in the UAE will watch the matches in the comfort of their homes, and across different football zones, hotels and F&B outlets on big screens across Dubai and the UAE.
“Millions of customers are starting their World Cup preparations, and this includes getting their match-ready setup sorted. As a result, sales and demand for televisions on Noon have more than doubled,” said Neha Choudhary, growth and digital strategy, Noon.com
Choudhary added that top brands such as Samsung, LG, Hisense, Xiaomi, and Nikai have seen a hike in demand and became popular on the platform in recent weeks.
“Thanks to events like our recent 11.11 Sale and Noon's upcoming biggest Yellow Friday Sale, customers will have more opportunities to improve their game-ready setup at incredible prices, with cashback incentives and more,” she added.
In addition to digital stores, brick-and-mortar outlets have also reported good TV sales driven by Fifa World Cup Qatar.
“We are witnessing a huge upsurge in TV sales in the run-up to World Cup, especially for the big screen TVS, the heightened interest for the most popular sports event in the world coupled with new technology and affordability on larger screens is driving a massive increase in demand,” says Mohammad Badri, director, Eros Group.
“Fans will spend an average of 5,400 minutes to watch their much-awaited month-long sport in the comfort of their home along with family or friends,” he said, adding that the UAE residents are looking at upgrading their TVS at least to a minimum of a 65-to-98inch screen for a heightened stadium experience, as this is the first World Cup to take place in an Arab country.
Badri added that there is more demand for bigger-screen TVS.
“The average screen size being purchased this World Cup has gone up from 55 inches to 75-85 inches. We are also seeing record sales of largest screen TVS like the 98-inch one for which we are seeing high demand in the last few weeks from our stores,” he added.
According to Redseer Strategy Consultants, around five billion eyes are expected to be glued to the Fifa World Cup in Qatar, expecting a growth of over 43 per cent compared to the viewership during the Fifa World Cup in Russia.
“Covid-fuelled digital penetration has given fans multiple ways for football engagement," said Sandeep Ganediwalla, Partner, Redseer Strategy Consultants. "The habits of football fans are evolving, and so is the way in which they experience football. Their interest is directed not only to the 90 minutes of the game, but also to behind-the-scenes content; and not just to established tournaments, but also to esports competitions.
“Historically, consumer spending increases during the winter festival months. Mega shopping events like Black Friday/white Friday drive shopping growth, and this, coupled with the World Cup will lead to much higher spending. People will be hooked to the World Cup, and an interesting 83 per cent of football fans use a smartphone while watching the match on TV. We estimate higher cu stomer spending in online channels across different sectors,” he added.