The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) and Independent Television (ITV) have opted not to bid for the rights to televise the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup. This decision has left FIFA increasingly concerned about the visibility of its flagship tournament in a key market.
DAZN, a sports streaming platform, has secured global rights for the Club World Cup by agreeing to pay $1bn (£787m). The deal includes broadcasting all 63 matches free-to-air on its app. In an attempt to reach larger audiences, DAZN has also agreed to sublicense the tournament's broadcast rights in certain key territories. Warner Bros will be broadcasting in the United States, while Channel 4 or Channel 5 are potential partners in the UK.
Despite this setback with BBC and ITV, DAZN remains confident of securing an agreement. An industry source revealed that DAZN's typical audience for live sport in the UK is usually within low ten thousands. Although specific viewing figures are undisclosed, it is known that DAZN boasts a global reach of 60 million premium users and 300 million monthly users.
Manchester City and Chelsea will represent England's Premier League at this summer’s Club World Cup where winners could receive up to £97m prize money after seven matches. Other notable participants include Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami.
Lack of interest from major broadcasters
Major broadcasters including Sky Sports and TNT Sports have shown no interest in televising this event either. The BBC reportedly dismissed any proposal due to difficulties promoting a commercial channel given its public service remit while talks with ITV did not progress beyond exploratory conversations last month.
However, both BBC and ITV will share coverage of another major football event - Women’s European Championship where England’s Lionesses defend their title in Switzerland. This event begins just two days before the Club World Cup quarter-finals.
DAZN's future plans
DAZN is understood to be seeking a sublicensing arrangement where a free-to-air broadcaster will take all 63 matches, ensuring maximum exposure for its brand. The streaming platform plans to send a production team and presenters to the US for this high-profile football event.
The London-based platform, owned by billionaire Len Blavatnik, is better known in the UK for its coverage of world title boxing in Saudi Arabia but also holds rights for Premier League, La Liga, NFL and NBA broadcasts in other European countries.
DAZN’s links with Saudi Arabia seem to be underpinning the financing of the Club World Cup. Last month Surj Sports Investment group from Saudi Arabia confirmed it had taken a minority stake valued at $1bn in DAZN. FIFA subsequently announced that both prize and appearance fund would also amount to $1bn with Manchester City and Chelsea receiving £29.6m each just for participating.
