The Asian Football Confederation (AFC), the governing body for football in Asia, has signed an exclusive digital rights agreement with India's sports-focused live-streaming platform, FanCode. This landmark deal covers the 2025–2028 cycle and is expected to significantly enhance the fan experience.
Under this new agreement, FanCode will broadcast every AFC national team and club competition for the 2025–2028 cycle. This includes high-profile tournaments such as the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2026 from Australia, the AFC Asian Cup 2027 in Saudi Arabia, the AFC U-23 Asian Cups in 2026 and 2028.
In addition to these established competitions, the deal also extends to three newly announced club competitions. They are the AFC Champions League Elite, the AFC Champions League Two and the AFC Women’s Champions League.
AFC General Secretary, Datuk Seri Windsor John, said:
“The passion for the beautiful game in India has grown exponentially in the past decade and the AFC is delighted to enter into this partnership with FanCode as we seek to grow the consumption of Asian football in the world’s most populated country."
"We thank FanCode for their faith in the AFC’s world-class competitions and we look forward to working closely with them to strengthen our engagement with our ever-expanding fanbase in India as we seek to ensure football remains the most popular sport in the Continent.”
This comprehensive coverage marks a significant upgrade from previous arrangements where FanCode aired a limited number of tournaments via sublicensing agreements.
FanCode is committed to improving accessibility for fans by ensuring that some matches are shown live on linear free TV via a sub-license or a sports television channel with broad reach. This move aims at expanding viewership beyond just digital platforms, thereby reaching out to more fans across different mediums.
Yannick Colaco, co-founder of FanCode, said:
“The five-year partnership with the AFC will allow FanCode to bring the best of men’s and women’s football action from Asia to fans in India. Asian football is on the rise and is now home to some of the biggest stars including Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar."
"This is in line with our commitment to bring fans access to top-class sporting events from across the world and build FanCode as a premium sporting destination.”
The execution and maintenance of this agreement will be overseen by Asia Football Group (AFG), which is the commercial partner of the AFC. AFG's involvement ensures that both parties adhere to their commitments while facilitating smooth operations throughout this four-year cycle.
This exclusive digital rights deal between the AFC and FanCode promises to bring an unprecedented level of access to AFC competitions for fans. By broadcasting every national team and club competition, including newly announced tournaments, FanCode is set to become a go-to platform for football fans during the 2025-2028 cycle.
