Woowa Brothers, which operates Baemin, said on the 22nd that food delivery orders from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m. on the 20th, when the international soccer tournament final was held, increased 39.2% compared with the same day and time a week earlier.
By time slot, orders in the 3 a.m. hour—just before the 4 a.m. kickoff—rose 72%, the biggest jump. Orders in the 4 a.m. hour, right after kickoff, increased 55.8%, and those in the 2 a.m. hour were up 16.7%.
The most-ordered menu item was chicken. Based on order count, chicken logged about three times more orders than cafes and fast food, which ranked second and third, respectively.
In fact, the chicken industry enjoyed a boom during the tournament. According to Genesis BBQ Group, which operates BBQ, as of 1 p.m. on the 19th, when the second group-stage match between the Korea national team and Mexico was held, sales at major stores increased about 4.5 times compared with the same time a week earlier.
While most food categories saw order counts rise by around 10%–20%, chicken also posted the highest category growth rate at 138.6%. It was followed by pizza (75.3%) and jokbal (74.5%), other staple late-night dishes.
A Baemin official said, "It appears many customers stayed up to cheer and enjoy the special moment of the final," adding, "We will continue to run our service so we can respond steadily to delivery demand."