Mexico fans toss a fellow supporter in the air during a watch party at Klyde Warren Park during Mexico’s World Cup match against England on July 5. England won the match 3-2. Photo Credit: Smiley N. Pool/The Dallas Morning News
There’s a popular saying in Latino culture, often used to console those who find the cards are not falling in their favor: “desgraciado en el juego, afortunado en el amor,” or “unlucky in the game, lucky in love,” it promises.
A Dallas-based dating app is taking that sentiment to heart this summer with a World Cup promotion that seeks to unite fútbol fans whose teams are going home without the ultimate prize.
Chispa, which advertises itself as the No. 1 dating app for Latinos in the U.S., launched a Lucky Losers campaign to connect Latino singles who root for the same team — and suffer the same loss.
“We realized everybody’s celebrating winners when most people actually will go through a loss,” said Julia Estacolchic, senior director of brand and marketing at Chispa. “Out of 48 teams that are playing, 47 will lose.”
With that in mind, the company is going the extra mile in its matchmaking — literally. It’s coordinating speed dating-esque car rides for prospective pairs to get to know each other in the back seat, and it’s offering to foot the bill for dinner afterward for those who find a spark.
The thesis underpinning the promotion is simple: Grieving fans don’t actually want to be alone in their sorrow. In fact, sharing the experience of a loss might actually be helpful for breaking the ice and finding common ground with a date.
Estacolchic’s team wanted to see if that theory was correct, so they invited all their users to take a survey — a strategy they often employ before launching a campaign or changing parts of the in-app experience to make sure they’re aligned with what their audience wants, she said.
The results were resounding. Almost half of Chispa’s respondents said they instinctively reach out to others after their team is eliminated, whether by texting a crush or opening a dating app and finding someone to grab drinks with. Only 7% said they put their phones on Do Not Disturb after a loss. And a whopping 97% said they would still want to go on a date that evening.
“We were all like, ‘Oh my God, this is more true than we ever expected,’ ” Estacolchic said.
So, the company went full steam ahead on its Lucky Losers campaign.
The experience starts in the app, where users can post stickers on their profile to display their team allegiance. A flag is available for every qualifying nation. Another digital sticker pack helps identify users’ relationship intent, with fútbol-themed phrases like “rebound season” and “ready to take the shot” accompanied by images of jerseys, goals and trophies.
It’s also partnering with Alto, a rideshare company based in Dallas, to provide 15-minute rides to its lucky losers. Users are invited through the Chispa app to sign up for the rides, then are matched with another local fan of their team of choice and given a time slot to be picked up.
To help defuse the nervous energy that comes with any first date, a popular Latino streamer will be present in the front seat to act as a kind of matchmaking guide, asking questions and helping facilitate banter with the couple. Chispa has partnered with Chance, Miriam, XOJAS and Romeo — whose respective TikTok followings range from 300,000 to 1.4 million — to be their copilots.
At the end of the 15 minutes, the couple is asked whether they want to keep the conversation going. If they do, they’re brought to Leela’s Wine Bar a few blocks away, where Chispa pays for a two-hour dinner. If not, they’re dropped off back at the watch party, where digital creators Inez Lopez, Marlene Chavarria, Andrew Saucedo and Melody Guerra hand out free T-shirts and keep the energy high.
Dallas was chosen as the host site for the Lucky Losers initiative in part because of its convenient location as both a World Cup host city and the site of the company’s headquarters. But more importantly, it represents the dating app’s fourth-largest market, providing a large pool of single fútbol fans for the initiative to serve.
The program closes July 14, with another watch party and slate of date-rides scheduled for when Spain returns to Dallas to face France in the semifinals. Estacolchic is optimistic that the initiative will help more couples find that “chispa,” or “spark,” that turns their night around.
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