Do Weddings and The World Cup Go Hand in Hand?

• In 2018, 22% of marriages will take place during the World Cup, and nearly 60% of brides-to-be think that this may affect their special day
• 19% of couples will set up big screens and make soccer matches their guest of honor
• Mariages.net is helping couples tackle this real issue, providing solutions that combine weddings and soccer

June 12, 2018 – Based on the opinions received on the wedding site Mariages.net, a leader in France and around the world, the biggest challenge brides-to-be face in 2018 is clearly the World Cup. Mariages.net conducted a survey of 150,000 brides on its site to learn if this was actually a serious issue, and to find out what solutions brides-to-be have found to strike a balance between their wedding and the soccer matches taking place.

In 2018, two out of ten weddings will take place in June and July. Most couples still prefer to have their weddings in the Summer. This, in itself, is nothing unusual: the good weather and guests’ greater availability all play important roles in why this season is chosen. However, summer this year is not only the beginning of wedding season – it also marks the kickoff of the World Cup.

Within the community at Mariages.net, many brides to be have shared their concerns: “We’re getting married on June 23, and I’m praying that France isn’t going to have a match that day!” says Coralie. “I’m getting married on June 16th and France will play that day, I hope that the guests won’t get there late,” says Mélodie. “It was the date that we had wanted from the start, but soon we realized that it was during the World Cup, so we changed the timing of the wedding,” says Amandine. “I’m getting married on June 16 at 3 p.m., and the first game France’s team will play is at 12. I can’t begin to describe how much stress I’m feeling over this…” says Lucile. So, is this a real problem, or just baseless fears?

More than half (59%) of the brides-to-be surveyed were unaware of the fact that their wedding would coincide with the World Cup. When given this news, opinions are divided, with 57% believing it could affect their wedding, and 42% believing that, on the contrary, it would be a fortunate coincidence. According to the Mariages.net survey, the fear is real, even if solutions exist, with 19% of the people surveyed saying they chose not to avoid the soccer matches but instead to put them front and center by installing big screen TVs, giving guests radios, preparing special decorations, or even allowing games, particularly gambling. Other couples have gone further, deciding to walk down the aisle to the music from the Champions League.

Since future newlyweds will have to address the issue of the World Cup in 2018, many have decided it would be best to own the event by allowing it to be shown at the wedding, with some going one step further by setting up soccer-themed activities. Thanks to planning in advance by the future newlyweds, and the considerations made for soccer-loving guests, the two events can be carried out without any conflict between them, and the newlyweds won’t risk being sidelined by their guests on their special day due to an upcoming soccer match.

So, in response to the question of: “can soccer and weddings go together hand in hand?” the results seem mixed: 53% feel that their guests have to understand that this is their day and that football has to take second stage; on the other hand, 43% think that it will go fine, and that they will have even more fun thanks to the excitement surrounding the soccer matches. The concerns of brides and grooms are very real, but overall, many feel the score between these two camps is tied.

About Mariages.net
Mariages.net, a leading wedding website in France and around the world, has been created to help future newlyweds organize fun and practical weddings that perfectly fit their needs. Thanks to its international presence, the website, part of the WeddingWire group, now boasts a database of more than 400,000 professionals working in the sector. It’s home to a community of more than 2 million brides. Mariages.net provides a directory of qualified professionals, and offers thousands of ideas and tips, as well as planning tools for organizing the wedding: planning, guest lists, budget management, wedding sites, wedding lists, wedding catalogs, etc. In 2016, Mariages.net was voted best site of the year and the most popular site in the Community category. The WeddingWire Group operates in North America, South America, Europe, and Asia, and is active in 15 countries (the US, Canada, UK, France, Spain, Italy, Brazil, and more) on the following websites: WeddingWire.com, Bodas.net, Matrimonio.com, Mariages.net Casamentos.pt, Bodas.com.mx, Casamentos.com.Br, matrimonial.com.Co, matrimonial.cl, Casamientos.com.AR, matrimonial.com.pe, Weddingspot.co.uk, Casamiento.com.uy, Weddingwire.ca and Weddings.co.in.