Naver's streaming platform CHZZK is reaping the benefits of broadcasting the 2026 North and Central America World Cup. On days when the Korea national team plays, daily active users (DAU) have nearly tripled from usual levels, surpassing 2.5 million. In contrast, SOOP, which did not secure broadcast rights, moved to defend with "audio-only commentary" content without on-screen video. For now, CHZZK appears to have won on points across key metrics, but analysts say the decisive factor will be how many users who came during the World Cup it can retain.
According to Mobile Index on the 24th, CHZZK's app DAU on the 12th, when the group-stage match between Korea and the Czech Republic was played, reached 2,526,924. That is about 2.8 times higher than the same weekday a week earlier, the 5th (901,229), when there was no soccer match. CHZZK sustained the momentum on the 19th, when the Mexico match was held, with 2,528,896 DAU.
Naver's own tally combining PC and mobile also shows a clear broadcasting effect. Peak concurrent users for the Czech Republic match reached 4,825,000, and 4,780,000 for the Mexico match. Despite both matches being broadcast on weekday mornings, they attracted around 4.8 million viewers, leading to expectations that the third match against South Africa on the 25th, a watershed for advancing from the group stage, could surpass 5 million.
Observers attribute CHZZK's World Cup boom to its acquisition of exclusive new media broadcasting rights. Naver signed a contract last year with JoongAng Group, which obtained exclusive broadcasting rights in Korea for the Summer and Winter Olympics and the FIFA World Cup, securing domestic new media rights for the World Cup and the Olympics through 2032.
In Korea's streaming platform market, CHZZK, SOOP, and YouTube are the main pillars, but CHZZK and SOOP have primarily competed in live sports. SOOP secured rights to the 2022 Qatar World Cup and the 2024 Paris Olympics, while CHZZK drew sports viewers this year by carrying the Winter Olympics and the North and Central America World Cup.
As viewers concentrated on CHZZK, new user inflows also surged. Daily new installs of the CHZZK app stood at 4,316 on the 5th, just before the World Cup, but jumped to 520,775 on the 12th, when the Korea national team played its first match. That is more than 120 times the same weekday a week earlier.
By contrast, SOOP's World Cup windfall has been relatively limited without broadcast rights. SOOP is seeking to attract users through audio-only commentary by top streamers such as Gamst and cheering broadcasts. The approach encourages viewers to keep the official broadcast on separately while enjoying interaction and a cheering atmosphere on SOOP.
With this strategy, SOOP's app DAU rose 23.6%, from 821,820 on the 5th to 1,016,120 on the 12th. However, compared with CHZZK, whose DAU climbed to 2.5 million over the same period, the gap between the two platforms widened markedly.
Industry consensus holds that it remains to be seen whether this edge during major sports events will continue in the long run. Once the period ends, the spike can fade quickly as users depart.
SOOP, which obtained new media rights for the 2022 Qatar World Cup, saw its monthly active users (MAU) in November, during the tournament, rise 11.6% to 2,712,240 from about 2.43 million the previous month. But in January 2023, right after the World Cup ended, MAU fell to 2,392,740, returning to pre-World Cup levels.
CHZZK experienced a similar pattern during coverage of the Milano-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics early this year. In Feb., when the Olympics were held, CHZZK's MAU increased 11.3% to 3,548,705 from about 3.18 million the prior month, but in Mar., after the event ended, it declined to around 3.06 million.
The heavy burden of broadcasting rights fees is also a factor that cannot be ignored. New media rights fees for major sports events such as the Olympics or the World Cup are known to be at least in the tens of billions of won. Some say it is difficult to recoup the investment with advertising and user support alone. Observers also see SOOP's decision to step back from this North and Central America World Cup rights race—after leading coverage of the Qatar World Cup and the Paris Olympics—as a cost-effectiveness judgment.
Hwang Yong-sik, a professor in the School of Business Administration at Sejong University, said, "Advertising revenue and the size of rights fees are elements that can be predicted to some extent before signing," and noted, "There needs to be a sense of direction for how investment in rights will connect to a long-term platform growth strategy."