Flashscore's World Cup playbook: Creators, data-driven news and real-time scores
The live sports website has 125m monthly active users, and wants to net another 27m as the footballing nations take to the global stage
– 4 min read
Flashscore started life in 2006 as a live sports scores website determined to deliver results faster and more reliably than the competition. Some 15 years later, it's a fully-fledged sports media platform boasting 125 million monthly active users, 200 million app downloads, and an editorial team of 150 journalists and 180 audio commentators, publishing in 31 countries.
Recent acquisitions, such as the Spanish football platform BeSoccer, have added over 30 million monthly users and strengthened Flashscore’s presence in key football markets worldwide.
Under chief digital content officer Alan Záruba, Flashscore launched its news section in 2021, blending live data with multimedia editorial content. The goal was to make news data-driven and seamlessly connected to the core product.
Záruba says that most users come to the products with live scores and live stats, but are tempted into editorial content through interlinking, tags, and personalised notifications. Flashscore segments users by their favourite teams, players, and behaviours, tailoring content and push notifications accordingly.
My Flashscore favourites and news feed
"If, for example, you're a Liverpool fan, I would send you notifications about articles about the stars of your club, about the results which the club achieved in the last round or in the cup," explains Záruba.
"I would send you all the information about ratings of the players, news specials, which we do about what happened every week. And if your player or your club is part of this, you will get it."
The stage is set
With the kick-off of the FIFA World Cup 2026 in the US and Mexico, there is a big opportunity to grow its user base even further.
Flashscore knows that big tournaments can be powerful audience magnets and growth engines — 16 million new users during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, 20 million during the combined Euro and Copa America cups in 2024, and 5 million from the 2025 Club World Cup.
Live World Cup Coverage in Flashscore: Czech Republic vs South Africa
Football dominates as a sport. Nearly two-thirds of Flashscore's users primarily use the platform to follow football. This includes checking live scores, stats, news, and related content for football matches. Tennis (10 per cent) and basketball (nine per cent) make up the next spots.
Flashscore is hoping to go one bigger in the current competition, aiming for 27 million new users from now until the final on 19 July 2026. Beyond its usual coverage and services, it has targeted a new growth area.
