Unic Press UK: The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) said on Thursday, the 30th March, that the media rights for the 2018 World Cup and other soccer events that will hold in 2017 and in 2018 had been awarded to five broadcasting corporations in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The five media groups that were granted media rights are: Econet Media, Supersport, SABC, StarTimes, and CANAL+.
The full text of FIFA’s media release reads:
Following an open tender process for 42 territories* in sub-Saharan Africa, FIFA has granted media rights to five major broadcasting entities in the region. The tender was launched on 21 October 2016 and included the media rights to all 2017-2018 FIFA events**, including the FIFA Confederations Cup Russia 2017 and the 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia™.
The following broadcasters have been awarded certain media rights with regard to the 2018 FIFA World Cup:
- Econet Media, by way of free-to-air and pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub‑Saharan Africa except South Africa;
- Supersport, by way of pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub‑Saharan Africa;
- SABC, by way of free-to-air transmission for exploitation in South Africa;
- StarTimes, by way of pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub-Saharan Africa except South Africa; and
- CANAL+, by way of pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub-Saharan Africa except South Africa and Nigeria.
The following broadcasters have been awarded certain media rights with regard to other 2017‑2018 FIFA events:
- Econet Media, by way of free-to-air and pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub-Saharan Africa except South Africa;
- Supersport, by way of pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub‑Saharan Africa;
- SABC, by way of free-to-air transmission for exploitation in South Africa; and
- StarTimes, by way of pay-TV transmission for exploitation in all territories of sub-Saharan Africa (except the FIFA Confederations Cup 2017 in South Africa).
The outcome of this tender process enables FIFA to reach its aim of securing the widest possible coverage across the region with the highest profile matches available on a free-to-air basis. By working together with reliable partners in the region, FIFA will make sure that football fans have access to a high-quality viewing experience for each of the FIFA events, including by way of digital platforms.
“We are delighted to work with our appointed broadcast partners in the sub-Saharan region to allow millions of fans to enjoy each of FIFA’s various events across a multitude of platforms,” said FIFA’s Chief Commercial Officer Philippe Le Floc’h.
* The 42 territories are: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Congo DR, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe
** The 2017-2018 FIFA events comprise: FIFA U-20 World Cup 2017; FIFA U-17 World Cup 2017; FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup 2017; FIFA Confederations Cup 2017; FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup 2018; FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2018; 2018 FIFA World Cup
