Food for Thought: Star-Spangled Burgers

Research evidence excerpt

Food for Thought: Star-Spangled Burgers

Deutsche Bank

Research

North America Industry Date

United States 2 July 2026

Food for Thought

Consumer Periodical

Restaurants

Star-Spangled Burgers

Lauren Silberman, CFA

World Cup Kicks Up Restaurant Traffic Research Analyst

The FIFA World Cup appears to be a modest tailwind for the overall US restaurant +1-212-250-1285

industry this summer. Based on data from Square analyzing millions of transactions

Skyler Limber

from 6/11-6/27, bars & breweries have unsurprisingly seen the most meaningful Research Associate

benefit, with an 8% increase in revenue during the tournament’s group stage +1-212-250-9185

matches vs baseline, while transactions at FSRs were up 3.5% and QSRs up 3.1%.

Anish Chejerla

As expected, host cities have seen more meaningful lifts, with transactions at bars

Research Associate

& breweries over the group stages up 28% in Boston, 23% in Philadelphia, 21.8%

+1-212-250-9293

in Seattle and 18.5% in New York/New Jersey. We would expect the food

distributors (SYY, USFD, PFGC) to be among the most meaningful beneficiaries

within our coverage as they skew to independent restaurants. Dynamics among

chains appear more mixed. DRI indicated the World Cup appears to be a headwind

for most of its brands outside of Yard House, and we believe the same could be true

of other chains as it disrupts normal routines. There could also be some

unanticipated lifts, noting TXRH has seen traction on social media as international

visitors experienced the value-leading steakhouse and iconic rolls.

Innovation Beyond Food & Beverages

While restaurants have long offered collectibles in kids meals, there is an increasing

push toward selling and giving away collectibles/merch to drive traffic. Starbucks'