Sports and fast-food have, for years, gone hand in hand. Chains pay big money to sponsor or even appear at given events while a large part of athletes' earnings come from high-profile food partnerships.
Yum! Brands (YUM) chain Taco Bell has been partnering with the MLB for its annual "Steal A Base, Steal A Taco" promotion for years, while there is a reason you can only buy Pepsi (PEP) products at MetLife stadium and Coca-Cola (KO) products at all Capital One arenas.
There were even, for those old enough to remember, the McDonald's (MCD) Sydney Olympics backpacks that everyone seemed to have in the year 2000.
Fast casual Tex-Mex chain Chipotle (CMG) periodically dabbles in the world of sports as well. For the last Olympic Games in Beijing, the chain launched the Team Chipotle Menu featuring menus created by athletes like Olympic rock climber Brooke Raboutou and cross-country skier Jessie Diggins.
The idea was that fans could "eat like an Olympian" by having what their favorite sports stars order at the chain -- for ice hockey player Kendall Coyne Schofield, the order was chicken, rice, tomato salsa, and sour cream but no cheese.
How Do I Get That Free Chipotle?
This time, the Chipotle is setting its sights on the FIFA World Cup -- for every goal scored by the U.S. Men's National Soccer Team, the fast-casual chain is giving away 5,000 codes for a free entrée. (For those who do not eat there regularly, that means a choice between a burrito, a bowl, a quesadilla or a salad.)
The codes will be posted on Twitter (TWTR) from the accounts of both Chipotle (@ChipotleTweets) and U.S. Men's National Team (@USMNT) and be valid until the first 5,000 text it to 888222 to receive another code.
That code will be unique so that those who got it can claim it at a Chipotle location. As the average FIFA games ends with 2.6 goals, Chipotle estimates that the total value of entrées given out will total over $1 million -- although, of course, the final number will vary depending on how the American team performs during this World Cup. (The team didn't even qualify for the 2018 World Cup.)
And as with past major sporting events, Chipotle is also launching two bowls created by two participating athletes. The Christian Pulisic Bowl is made with chicken, white rice, pinto beans, sour cream, cheese, lettuce and guacamole while the Weston McKennie Bowl has double chicken, white rice, extra tomatillo-red salsa, extra sour cream, cheese, lettuce and guacamole.
Chipotle/TheStreet
Only Order That Online, Please
The bowls will only be available for order online and on the Chipotle app while those who order them on U.S. Men's team match day can also get free delivery by using the "USMNT22" promo code.
The digital menu taps into another trend currently roiling the fast-food industry -- every single one is currently working double-time to get customers to use their mobile apps.
This summer, Wendy's (WEN) handed out free breakfast sandwiches to those who used its app to make any other purchase while Taco Bell saw its subscriptions soar to 1.4 million after launching the online-only Taco Lovers' Pass last January.
"There's kind of a race for shelf space — except it's a race for a share of customers' minds — and phones," Deloitte restaurant analyst Andrew Feinberg told the Chicago Tribune.
