The history of sports marketing is littered with sponsors who paid handsomely for the privilege of having their logos seen but not remembered. Unilever, it seems, has decided to take a different approach to the 2026 FIFA World Cup — one that involves placing its deodorant brands precisely where viewers might actually think about deodorant.

As the official personal care sponsor of the tournament, the consumer products giant has deployed 35 of its brands across 120 markets, with a particular emphasis on Rexona, Degree and Dove. The strategy, according to Ben Curtis, global brand vice president for Rexona and Sure at Unilever, has been to make a global platform feel "hyper local, hyper relevant and intimate."

The most literal manifestation of this philosophy may be the logo placements on the shirts worn by officials holding substitution boards — positioned, Mr. Curtis noted with evident satisfaction, in the armpit areas.

"It's a soccer-world first to have the branding on the armpits of the officials, and you know it's consciously done," he said. (One imagines the media planners were rather pleased with themselves.)

The broader campaign began in late March with broadcast spots featuring national team players from Brazil, England, Germany and the United States, followed by a Dove commercial in May promoting body confidence among girls in sports. Once the tournament kicked off in mid-June, Unilever activated experiential spaces at stadiums where fans could collect travel-sized products and personalized trading cards from Panini, the collectibles company.

The company has also constructed what it calls "The Locker Room," a round-the-clock social media operation staffed by creators producing real-time content for TikTok and YouTube — the largest sports-driven activation in the history of Unilever's personal care division, according to Sarah Potter, the unit's influencer and media director.

Ms. Potter said the operation has drawn between 20 and 50 creators and athletes daily to its New York location, including the retired Brazilian star Roberto Carlos and the former England player Daniel Sturridge.

The tournament sponsorship follows a template Unilever refined through an unlikely partnership: the company outfitted bathrooms at Charli XCX's "Sweat Tour" after noticing online complaints about venue odors. Ryu Yokoi, chief media and marketing capability officer at Unilever North America, said the brand has since replicated the model at Coachella and the United States Open.

The World Cup, Mr. Yokoi acknowledged, is somewhat larger.

Original story published in campaignlive.com: "No sweat: How Unilever kept its brands fresh on consumers’ minds during World Cup | Campaign US"