• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer, March 27, 2026

Somewhere right now, 2.6 million people are listening in as Lionel Messi, Sir David Beckham, and Steve Carell plan a watch party over WhatsApp. The group chat launched less than two weeks ago, and it's the centerpiece of what Lay's Vice President of Global Marketing Alexis Porter calls a "scaled intimacy" play for FIFA World Cup 2026. She tells CPG Insiderabout the new approach and how it fits into the brand's sweeping repositioning. 

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

CPG Insider: The use of WhatsApp is very different. How do you make that decision?

Porter: We're the official snack sponsor and the No. 1 potato chip of FIFA World Cup, but it's so much more than a sponsorship. You can't just slap your logo on something anymore. You have to find and follow fan conversations and behaviors, and while that's true in sports overall, FIFA is at a different level. We were excited to partner with WhatsApp to create a first-of-its-kind technology. It's a scaled intimacy play — a group chat for an epic watch party, with partners we've worked with for years: Alexia Putellas, Lionel Messi, Sir David Beckham, Thierry Henry, and Steve Carell.

CPG Insider: And they were actually …together?

Porter: Yes! The thing that blew me away is that a lot of times you have talent, and shoot them separately. You don't really get a chance to have them together and create the magic. What was really cool — and very rare in our industry — we had all the talent together and they have a chemistry. These players have known each other for a long time. People are asking, "Were they really together?" And we say, yep. That's why it is so relatable. When you're talking with friends, that's the way you behave.

CPG Insider: These players have many endorsement deals and are well known to fans, because of that. What does Steve Carell – a famous face but a soccer nobody – bring to the party?

Porter: These players are long-term brand partners, and Lay's has been invested in this sport for a very long time. But yes, the thinking with Steve Carell was different. He is everyperson — the guy who may not know much about the game or be the most engaged fan. There's someone like that in every group chat. He can ask those questions in a light-hearted way.

CPG Insider: Why the watch party angle?

Porter: Because this is how fans actually behave. They're getting ready, getting excited, making plans. That's the difference between just using social media and messaging, and why we partnered with WhatsApp — they have three billion users across 180 countries. Talking in real time, with voice notes, memes, back-and-forth. They might be celebrities, but they are real people, too, talking like real people.

We didn't know what to expect, but in less than two weeks, 2.6 million people have already joined, with more signing on every day. And they are engaged — laughing, sharing, putting stickers on simple text messages.

Beyond the chat, which we developed with agency Slap, we're experimenting with other ways to fuel fandom. There's a host guide for planning your watch party, a watch-party reel to help you create a video recap, and quizzes. And Fan of the Match is a big global promotion. For the first time, we're honoring fans the way the sport honors players, with 104 matches, one winner per game.

CPG Insider: A new approach often means more risk, and fewer metrics. And Lay’s, and PepsiCo foods broadly, is in the midst of massive rebranding as it tries to get back to growth. Was it hard to get marketing leadership to buy into this plan?

Porter: Our brand goal is simply to be where consumers want to hear from us and deliver the platforms and capabilities that are respectful and worth coming back to. Yes, it's a risk. But unless you're pushing and constantly innovating, you're not going to know how to engage people. Fan expectations are high. So the metric we were looking at is engagement — in somewhere you didn't expect and in ways you didn't expect. And we're learning how to personalize this, too.

CPG Insider: Does launching something this big in the middle of a repositioning make it harder or easier to break through?

Porter: World Cup is a stage. Our new visual identity shows what we look like and what is important to us — putting the potato and real ingredients at the center. We were always invited to the party, but we're showing up with our new look. We're the No. 1 chip brand in the world, and we have to show up with confidence. This is the perfect time, the cultural moment, to make sure you're visible.