Want to play hooky to watch the World Cup? U.S. coach has you covered

The World Cup used to be an afterthought for Americans. Not so anymore. The games are scoring record ratings this time around, despite the fact they’re taking place during work hours. Tomorrow at noon E.S.T, the U.S. team has its most momentous game, taking on soccer juggernaut Germany for the chance to advance to the final-16 team knockout round of the tournament.

The U.S. Soccer’s social media unit sense an opportunity. At 6:30 E.S.T. tonight, it posted a mock note of absence from work signed by team coach Jurgen Klinsmann. The tweet quickly showed signs of going viral, racking up 7,000 retweets in just over an hour. It was a stroke of brilliance for @usmnt, which has 1 million followers on Twitter.

Image via Photo Works

More in Marketing

Marketers shift growing shares of search spending to GEO

Generative AI is pushing brands to shift SEO budgets toward visibility in AI-generated answers over clicks.

Philadelphia Cream Cheese pulls dollars from search – people aren’t Googling ‘cream cheese’

Philadelphia Cream Cheese has stopped paying for search ads, at least to prospective shoppers on Google. Over the past year, the Kraft Heinz-owned CPG brand has phased out its traditional search ad spend, opting to put those dollars instead into retail media and broader channels, according to Maddy Zingle, vp of marketing for Philadelphia Cream […]

TikTok courts CMOs with first-ever Collective, as it targets bigger budgets

In its first CMO-focused event in the U.K. TikTok showcased how easy it is for brands to create content. The event is only part of the platform’s sharper 2026 commercial strategy: targeting larger, long-term ad budgets, courting independent agencies, and positioning itself as a serious competitor to Meta in 2026.