DoorDash smashes Uber Eats in World Cup search battle

DoorDash has used its US sponsorship of the 2026 FIFA World Cup to seize a commanding lead over Uber Eats in Australian food delivery app search share, according to new data released by Captify on 2 July 2026.

Captify's World Cup Effect dashboard, which tracks Australian consumer behaviour throughout the tournament, found DoorDash's brand share climbed to 91% during the Socceroos' recent match against Paraguay, against just 9% for category leader Uber Eats.

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Search share climbs match by match

The gap has widened as the tournament has progressed. During the Socceroos' opening match against Türkiye, DoorDash held a 75% share of search in the food delivery app category, compared with 25% for Uber Eats. That lead grew to 85% versus 15% during the match against the USA, before reaching 91% versus 9% against Paraguay.

DoorDash will be looking to extend the trend when the Socceroos face Egypt at 4 am AEST on Saturday, 4 July 2026.

Sponsorship "genuinely shifting consumer behaviour": Captify
Captify Australia general manager, Megan McElderry, said the tournament had already broken viewing records in Australia.

"The FIFA World Cup is the biggest global media and advertising event of the year, and it has already rewritten the record books," McElderry said.

"The most recent Socceroos game against Paraguay was the most-watched match in SBS history, while cumulative reach has hit 13.9 million - nearly half the Australian population has watched the tournament - and there's still another three weeks of games to go."

McElderry said the data indicated a direct commercial payoff from DoorDash's sponsorship.

"DoorDash's brand and search insights are demonstrative of the power of sport to reach and engage with Australian audiences," she said.

"As both a challenger brand and a World Cup sponsor, this dominance in search and brand share is exactly the kind of result that DoorDash wants. It shows that sponsorship is genuinely shifting consumer behaviour, not just adding to the noise.

"DoorDash has been the challenger brand in the Australian food delivery market, but our new search data shows the undeniable impact the World Cup coverage is having on the brand."

Search volumes up more than 12 times baseline

Captify said it draws on real-time search insights from more than 3 million websites globally, positioning it as the largest holder of onsite search data outside the walled gardens. The company said it had analysed Australian search patterns throughout the tournament, covering tournament-related queries, audience profile, and sponsor and brand engagement.

World Cup-related searches have spiked to 12.6 times baseline levels since the tournament began, according to Captify's data.

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