In a significant development for sports broadcasting in India, Zee Entertainment has secured the rights to broadcast the men's FIFA World Cups in 2026 and 2030, as well as the Women's World Cup in 2027. This move ensures that Indian fans will not miss out on these global soccer events.
The potential blackout of FIFA World Cup matches coverage in India was averted when Zee Entertainment struck an eleventh-hour deal with FIFA. The agreement grants broadcast rights to Zee's newly launched Unite8 Sports network for eight years, starting immediately.
Zee Entertainment deputy chief executive and chief financial officer, Mukund Galgali, said:
“The partnership with FIFA marks a significant step in our journey to create a strong foundation in the sports ecosystem to drive long-term value creation. Football as a sport has tremendous under-leveraged potential in a country like India, and we see a massive opportunity in unlocking its mass appeal for billions of viewers across the nation. Our approach in the sports business is anchored in building a scalable and financially sustainable growth model through a disciplined capital allocation framework.”
This deal means that coverage of various national team tournaments will be disseminated across four Unite8 Sports linear networks and the Zee5 OTT streaming service. Notably, this includes both men’s and women’s FIFA World Cups in under-17 and under-20 youth categories, the FIFA Futsal World Cups, and the annual club tournament - The FIFA Intercontinental Cup (up until 2030).
Comprehensive coverage plan
Zee is set to broadcast a total of 39 FIFA events until 2034. The first event under this agreement will be the kick-off of the 2026 Men's FIFA World Cup scheduled to take place across Mexico, US, and Canada on June 11th.
Negotiations for securing these rights were prolonged due to high asking prices from other Indian media companies such as Jio who were reluctant to meet them. Reports suggest that Zee paid around $30-35 million for securing rights for just one edition - barely one-third of what was initially demanded by FIFA.
FIFA plans on renegotiating its terms ahead of the Saudi Arabia-hosted Men's world cup slated for 2034 – another event expected to draw massive viewership due to the friendly time zone for Indian audiences. This deal marks the last major market where 2026 World Cup rights had not been sold, making it a significant achievement for FIFA.
Leadership and channel offerings
Zee has appointed Bavesh Janavlekar as Chief Business Officer in charge of Unite8 Sports channels. Janavlekar previously held a similar role at Zee overseeing its Marathi-language movies business across linear TV and studios.
The Unite8 channels will offer two types of coverage: 'Unite8 Sports 1' with English-language coverage and 'Unite8 Sports 2’ with Hindi coverage. Both offerings will have standard and high-definition channels, bringing the total to four channels.
With the launch of Unite8 Sports brand, Zee Entertainment plans on airing cricket once again along with soccer, kabaddi, badminton, wrestling, boxing among other sports. This comes after Zee left the sector following a fallout from its failed ICC cricket sublicensing agreement with Star in 2024. This eight-year deal between FIFA and Zee Entertainment is set to revolutionize sports broadcasting in India by providing comprehensive coverage of various national team tournaments across multiple platforms.
