Luckin Coffee Inc.

Luckin Coffee is weighing an expansion into Persian Gulf markets after securing backing from Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund Mubadala. Chairman David Li told CNBC on Monday that senior management is considering entering Gulf countries, saying there are other markets the company is currently looking at. Mubadala became a direct investor in Luckin through a $1B joint investment with Centurium Capital in early September, with neither side disclosing the respective stake size. The $385B sovereign fund has invested more than $20B in China, including into e-commerce giant Shein and real estate developer Dalian Wanda's shopping malls business. Luckin CEO Jinyi Guo told CNBC separately on Monday that the appeal of the Gulf lies in stable, high-frequency coffee demand and a growing preference for low-sugar, health-oriented drinks. With Centurium's backing, Luckin has overtaken Starbucks as China's biggest coffee chain by sales.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada has concluded, and Chinese brand marketing has shifted from a ‘betting-style’ approach to a ‘companion-style’ one, leveraging new tournament rules like cooling breaks and the emotional farewell of legendary players. FIFA mandated three-minute cooling breaks in each half of every match, adding approximately 7.5 hours of advertising time across the entire tournament. Fox Sports alone is expected to generate over 250 million dollars in advertising revenue from these breaks. Brands such as BOSS Zhipin, Bu Shui La, Eastroc Beverage, Alien Electrolyte Water, and Mengniu took turns appearing during CCTV’s cooling break slots. Capitalizing on the emotional farewell of superstars like Messi and Ronaldo, Mengniu, which has an endorsement deal with Messi, Cotti Coffee became the global sponsor of the Argentina national team, and Luckin Coffee sponsored the Portugal and Spain national teams, creating a rivalry among brand camps. Taobao Flash Sale partnered with 12 brands to anchor key match highlights. Carlsberg’s brand business grew over 600 percent year-on-year on June 27. After Spain’s victory, Luckin Coffee released 100,000 free drink coupons, with co-branded meal sets reaching an average customer spend of 33.9 yuan. Cotti Coffee tied free drinks to every goal scored by Argentina, giving away a total of 220,000 cups. Mengniu covered all 104 matches with the slogan ‘Whoever wins, come to Mengniu.’ Instant retail platforms also launched game-day food and drink companions. The marketing focus has shifted from pursuing exposure to resonating with consumer emotions and building long-term relationships.