Latin American music sales head south during World Cup
When the World Cup begins June 9, four Latin countries will be competing, and two of them — Brazil and Argentina — will have a serious shot at winning.
But while fans cheer, the music industry in Latin America will probably be singing the blues as paralysis of any non-soccer-related activity sets in. If past cups are any indication, average consumers are more likely to be watching matches than attending concerts or buying music, even when that music is World Cup-related.
“Traditionally, World Cup month is a slow sales month in the region,” says Raul Vazquez, who has lived through at least four cups, both as a region president and in his current post as regional director for IFPI Latin America.
“To give you an idea, every company in the country lets employees off midday so they can watch the games,” adds Jose Antonio Eboli, general manager of Universal Music Brazil. “As far as our business is concerned, there is a glut of releases previous to the cup. Acts know that during World Cup no one wants to know anything about buying albums.”
“Soccer is soccer,” says Arturo Velasco, head of Televisa Musica in Mexico. “It’s not that music disappears, but people are 100 percent into soccer, and everything else takes second place. But labels still look for certain tracks or compilations. It is an opportunity, after all.”Billboard
