FIFA has officially launched media rights tenders for the next two World Cup national team soccer tournaments in Hong Kong. The tenders cover both the men's and women's editions of the tournament set to take place in 2026 and 2027 respectively.
The invitations to tender were officially launched on January 16th, covering the men’s World Cup matches in 2026 (Mexico, US, and China), and the Women’s World Cup in 2027 (Brazil). Interested parties have until February 25th at exactly10:00 am Central European Time to submit their bids.
To request tender documents or make inquiries about this process, interested parties can reach out via email at hongkong-media-rights@fifa.org.
Previous broadcasts
In terms of previous broadcasts, Now TV - a pay-TV broadcaster based in Hong Kong - aired live coverage of both the men's World Cup held in Qatar in 2022 and women's tournament held across Australia and New Zealand in 2023. These tournaments were broadcasted after acquiring rights from Infront agency.
It is worth noting that neither male nor female representative teams from Hong Kong have ever qualified for a FIFA World Cup.
Recent developments
This move by FIFA comes shortly after another tender for media rights covering the men’s tournaments scheduled for both years; 2026 and2030 went live earlier this week Spain. Earlier this month also saw Germany kick off a similar process with a tender covering three upcoming world cups – two men’s editions (years not specified) and one women’s edition.
In recent deal announcements related to FIFA media rights tenders, December witnessed BBC alongside ITV retaining broadcasting rights for Men's world cup within UK territory while Netflix secured broadcasting rights within US territory specifically for Women's world cup scheduled for 2027 and 2031.
The move to take media rights tenders to Hong Kong is a significant step in FIFA's ongoing efforts to globalize the sport. It also presents an opportunity for broadcasters in the region to secure rights to one of the world's most-watched sporting events. As we approach the bid submission deadline, it will be interesting to see who emerges as the successful bidder(s) and how this will shape future World Cup broadcasts in Hong Kong.
