Soccer’s global governing body FIFA is facing a major broadcast challenge ahead of the 2026 World Cup, with no confirmed rights deals in place for India or China—two of the world’s biggest markets—just weeks before the tournament kicks off on June 11.
In India, a Reliance-Disney joint venture has reportedly offered $20 million for broadcast rights, far below FIFA’s expectations after initially seeking $100 million for the 2026 and 2030 tournaments. Previous deals, including the 2022 World Cup, saw rights sold for around $60 million, well in advance of the event. Sony, another potential broadcaster, opted not to make an offer, citing limited commercial viability.
China’s situation also remains unresolved, with no formal announcement about a broadcast partner. Traditionally, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV secured rights well ahead of the tournament and aggressively promoted the event. FIFA noted China accounted for nearly half of global digital and social platform viewing hours during the 2022 World Cup, underlining the market’s importance.
FIFA confirmed to Reuters that agreements have been reached in over 175 territories, but negotiations for China and India are “ongoing and must remain confidential at this stage.” The delay is striking, as the two countries together made up nearly a quarter of total global digital streaming reach for the last World Cup, despite football’s niche status in India compared to cricket.
Reliance-Disney argues that World Cup viewership in India will be impacted by time zone differences, with most matches airing after midnight, and a broader advertising slowdown. Sources also note that football commands a smaller commercial premium in India, and China’s football ecosystem remains underdeveloped.
With the tournament rapidly approaching, the lack of deals threatens to leave millions of fans in both countries without access to live coverage, and poses challenges for advertisers and sponsors hoping to leverage the event’s global reach. Industry experts suggest an agreement could still emerge at the last minute, but time is running out for setup, promotion, and infrastructure.
As FIFA seeks to finalize these critical rights deals, global attention will remain focused on how and where fans in India and China will be able to follow the beautiful game’s biggest event.
