Sony is using the fast-approaching World Cup as a means of promoting its range of 3D capable displays, with new advertising focussing on the immersion that 3D display technology could add to sporting events.

Sony’s new ad for its 3D displays, for those who haven’t seen it yet, features a raft of various different effects and situations in which the viewing experience could be improved by using 3D-capable kit. To highlight the point, the whole ad is presented in a kind of staggered, not-quite-stereoscopic doubling that gives the effect of seeing the proceedings from a not-quite-3D source. It’s then superimposed with the words, “Maybe it’s time to get a 3D TV.”

Of course, all of this is in line with Sony’s plans, announced towards the middle of 2009, that 2010 would be the year that it would be rolling out 3D displays in a big way, with the company saying then that sporting events would likely prove one of the biggest reasons people adopted the technology.

While the release of the phenomenally successful Avatar may have proved that there’s plenty of demand out there for 3D content, the fact is that sales of 3D displays for home use have been somewhat slower – a fact that may be a little unsurprising, given the general lack of content available for home use. Even Avatar itself has yet to be released in 3D, with the 2D version available on DVD and Blu-Ray already.

The big question will be whether or not people can be persuaded to pick up a 3D display on the strength of the World Cup, something that Sony is clearly hoping for. It seems a touch more likely that the market for 3D displays won’t open up more until there’s more content available.

If you’d like to take a look at the ad itself, you can check it out over at the Guardian.