The 2026 World Cup will be the biggest in the tournament’s history, and broadcasters submitting a tender for rights may have to pay more. With 48 teams competing, the number of games for the 2026 tournament is 104. Therefore, countries that are out of a rights deal must start their bidding process. That is the case in Portugal, where FIFA has officially started accepting bids for media rights to the 2026 World Cup.
From now through Nov. 19, FIFA will field bids from Portuguese broadcasters that want to air the World Cup in the country. In 2022, several broadcasters had the rights to the World Cup in Qatar. That included public-service station RTP. However, unlike some countries that sign multi-year deals and are locked in through 2026, broadcasters are lining up for the World Cup rights.
There are inherent challenges though. Broadcasters must contend with kickoff times that do not overly favor a European or specifically Portuguese market. For example, kickoff times for the World Cup in Qatar kicked off midday and into the evening. Moving to the United States, Mexico and Canada, World Cup kickoff times will be in the late afternoon and through the night. To be fair, those times are not locked in yet. FIFA tends to schedule games so fans of one nation will be available to watch easier. Given how many teams there are from Europe, though, it will be challenging to keep games spread out.
There is clear evidence of the effect of kickoff times, too. The 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand had far lower viewership figures than the tournament in France four years prior. Despite the USWNT being a favorite, it was hard for fans to tune in when kickoffs happened at 6 a.m. or 11 p.m. ET. The same will exist for Portuguese fans. That may affect how much broadcasters and providers are willing to offer FIFA.
While Portugal and several other countries will be in conversations with FIFA for the future of broadcast rights, the same does not exist for the United States. FOX, which has held FIFA World Cup rights since the 2015 women’s tournament in Canada. Games in the tournament will be at the mercy of FOX, making it the third men’s World Cup for the broadcaster. As the tournament nears, FOX will have increased and enhanced plans for how it will cover the World Cup on home soil.
That said, FOX will be in the mix again after the 2026 World Cup. However, there will be pressure from other broadcasters. FOX has become the home of international soccer in the United States. Given the sport’s growth, other contenders will see how much the rights will cost. Regardless of who submits rights, it will be an expensive property to take off of FOX’s hands. FOX has lost almost all of its club soccer competitions by building its focus on international soccer.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.
