Millions of football fans in the world’s two most populous countries may not be able to watch the World Cup starting next month due to an impasse over broadcasting rights in India and the lack of an official decision in China.
In India, a joint venture between Reliance and Disney offered US$20 million (R$99.2 million) for the broadcast rights to the 2026 World Cup, a fraction of the amount requested by FIFA (International Football Federation), which was not accepted by world football’s highest governing body, two sources told Reuters on Monday (4).
Sony has held talks but has also decided not to bid for the FIFA rights for India, a third source with direct knowledge of the matter said.
There was also no announcement of a deal for China, which, according to FIFA, represented 49.8% of all viewing hours on digital platforms and social networks globally during the 2022 World Cup.
FIFA has concluded agreements with broadcasters in more than 175 territories globally, it said in a statement.
“Discussions in China and India regarding the sale of media rights to the World Cup are ongoing and must remain confidential at this time,” it said in the statement.
Reliance-Disney, a joint venture led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance, did not respond to requests for comment, as did Sony.
The lack of a confirmed broadcast deal with India or China is unusual at this stage.
At previous World Cups, including those in 2018 and 2022, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV secured the rights well in advance and began airing promotional content and sponsored ads weeks before the tournament.
CCTV, which has a wide reach across television and digital platforms, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
China represented 17.7% and India 2.9% of global television coverage of the 2022 tournament. The two countries together represented 22.6% of global digital streaming coverage of the World Cup in Qatar.
The 2026 tournament begins on June 11, leaving just over five weeks for a deal to be finalized, broadcast infrastructure to be installed and advertising space to be sold.
Huge football crowd in China
For India, FIFA initially asked for US$100 million (R$496 million) for the broadcast rights to the 2026 and 2030 World Cups, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the negotiations are private.
When the World Cup was last broadcast in India in 2022, Reliance’s independent media arm secured the rights for around US$60 million (R$298 million), a figure announced around 14 months before the event in Qatar.
“FIFA is seeking a similar amount for this edition of the tournament,” a FIFA source told Reuters.
Since then, Reliance and Disney have formed a joint venture to become a dominant force in India’s media and streaming landscape, and the $20 million offer to FIFA highlights the Indian group’s negotiating power.
FIFA had significantly reduced its initial demand of $100 million, but was not interested in the $20 million amount offered by Reliance, a source said.
Reliance-Disney, which has spent billions on cricket broadcasting rights, believes the World Cup will have lower viewership in India because the tournament is being held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and most matches will be broadcast after midnight in India, the sources said.
China has around 200 million football fans, more than any other country, but has failed to field world-class teams, partly due to a top-down approach where clubs choose players from a very small pool of pre-selected candidates.
The second source added that football does not have the same commercial value in India as cricket, its most popular sport, and an advertising slowdown linked to the war in Iran has further eroded revenue expectations.
“Football is a niche segment in India,” the source said.
Sony, which has TV channels and a streaming app in India, also decided not to buy FIFA broadcasting rights as it did not make economic sense for the group, the third industry source said.
“There’s not much time left, but I wouldn’t call it a stalemate. It’s more like we’re at the end of a chess game with a few moves left,” said Rohit Potphode, managing partner, sports at advertising agency Dentsu India.
