FIFA’s World Cup 2018 begins today (as I’m writing this). Unfortunately, the United States did not make the field. However, FIFA just announced that North America (Canada, Mexico, and the U.S.) will host the World Cup in 2026.
Anyway, this is the biggest sporting competition on Earth. Nearly 3.5 billion viewers are expected to tune in to watch the World Cup. Despite their country’s absence, that includes more than 50 million Americans. And because the tournament is in Russia, most matches will take place during the normal workday in the U.S.
So, here’s the big questions: Should you let your employees watch the World Cup at work?
Let’s weigh some of the considerations.
Type of Workplace
This mostly comes down to “do employees have computers on their desks?” If so, they may have easy access to the World Cup matches. Plus, they probably also have a smartphone that would allow them to watch, though in miniature. Tablets, like iPads, offer a middle ground.
In those office settings, some employees will try to watch whether it’s allowed or not. Companies might be able to restrict access to the primary streaming sites (the World Cup will be on FOX and FS1 in the U.S.). But there will be workarounds.
Of course, there’s the option of expressly prohibiting the watching of sports at work. That may already be technically covered by a electronic communications policy. But, it will still be hard to monitor what people are doing on their personal devices throughout a large workplace.
On the other hand, if employees work in a factory, retail setting, or outside, their access to World Cup coverage will be more limited. There’s still the smartphone issue, but it’s harder to hold the phone while working with one’s hands. And these workplaces often raise greater safety concerns, probably necessitating more restrictions against distractions and use of non-work devices.
Productivity
Can your employees still get the work done while watching soccer? Certainly, some will be able to have the World Cup matches on in the background while still performing their work tasks at a high level. Others, however, will probably become completely immersed in the matches and get no work done.
Even the risk of lost production doesn’t make this a no-brainer issue. Every workplace features daily downtime, whether scheduled or not. Employees get breaks. Or they are sitting around waiting on customers, vendors, co-workers. Or they stop in the halls to make small talk, catch up with colleagues, etc. For employees interested in the World Cup, some of this normal downtime will revolve around the tournament anyway.
Workforce Demographics
Some employees like soccer. Others don’t. On the whole, Americans watch soccer much less than the rest of the world. It’s convenient for many U.S. employers that our brand of football schedules most of its games, including the big one, on Sundays.
So, who is most likely to watch the World Cup? Without getting into statistics or unfairly stereotyping, let’s just assume it’s possible that in your workplace:
- Men are more interested than women;
- Younger employees are more interested than older ones; and
- Immigrants are more interested than those born in the U.S.
Thus, banning (or attempting to ban) employees from watching the World Cup may disproportionately affect some categories of employees. (It could be these listed above, or other distinctions unique to your workforce.) Does that mean you can’t tell employees not to watch soccer at work? No. Or at least, probably not.
But do you let employees watch other non-work content at work? The Olympics? Big games featuring local teams? The Royal Wedding?
Make sure you’re not unreasonably discriminating against soccer and its fans.
Morale
All else being equal (and probably even if it’s not) happy employees are better than grumpy ones. Most employers can’t tolerate letting employees watch every match of the World Cup when they’re supposed to be working. (But, if they work in a sports bar or soccer-related industry, it could make sense.)
Still, if some employees who identify closely with a country in the World Cup want to get together in an empty conference room during their lunch hour to watch their team’s match, is it worth saying no? At the same time, will other employees complain when those soccer fans don’t return to their stations on time?
World Cup at Work
Each company will have to make its own decisions about whether to let employees watch the World Cup and other major world events at work. There’s no perfect one-size-fits-all solution. The goal (pun intended) is to optimize productivity and morale during an event that most of the world becomes obsessed with every four years.
For more about the tournament, go to FIFA’s website.
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