GUWAHATI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises on Monday, June 1, announced that it has secured the rights to broadcast the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 38 other FIFA events in India through 2034, ending months of uncertainty over the tournament’s broadcast availability in one of the last major unsold markets.
ALSO READ: Guwahati Burns Under Rising Heat as Vanishing Trees Leave City Gasping for Shade
The agreement between FIFA and Zee covers 39 FIFA events over an eight-year period, including the 2026 and 2030 FIFA World Cups, the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup and several youth and futsal tournaments. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
According to reports, FIFA had initially sought nearly $100 million for the India broadcast package covering the 2026 and 2030 World Cups before reducing the asking price to around $60 million.
Apart from the men’s and women’s World Cups, Zee will also broadcast tournaments including the U-17 World Cup, Women’s U-17 World Cup, U-20 World Cup, Women’s U-20 World Cup, Futsal World Cups, Women’s Futsal World Cups and the Intercontinental Cups. The broadcaster also said it plans to showcase FIFA-related docu-series content for Indian audiences.
The announcement comes just days before the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off on June 11 across the United States, Canada and Mexico. The opening fixtures will take place in Mexico City and Guadalajara, while the first match at the MetLife Stadium, temporarily renamed New York New Jersey Stadium for the tournament, will feature Brazil against Morocco on June 13.
Following the announcement, shares of Zee Entertainment rose around 7 percent during Monday’s trading session.
Meanwhile, All India Football Federation said the Indian men’s national football team will play two international friendlies against Tajikistan on June 5 and 9 in Hisor during the FIFA international match window.