With the 2026 North and Central America World Cup just one month away, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) has yet to finalize official broadcasting rights deals in China and India. The combined population of the two countries is about 2.9 billion, or 35% of the world's population. Both countries were core targets FIFA sought to newly bring into the fold as it expanded the finals.
But FIFA has found itself unable to secure even a stable home audience, let alone a stage in the finals. Experts said this is not simply because the World Cup's popularity has waned, but rather the result of a clash between FIFA's astronomical broadcasting fee demands aimed at populous nations and local broadcasters' hard-nosed calculations of profitability.
As of the 11th (local time), FIFA had finalized broadcasting rights deals with 175 countries worldwide. Having effectively wrapped up talks with major countries, only the largest deals with China and India remain adrift. In an official statement that day, FIFA said, "Discussions with China and India are ongoing regarding the sale of media rights for the 2026 FIFA World Cup," adding, "At this stage, we cannot disclose specifics due to confidentiality principles."
The World Cup is one of the most anticipated sporting events in China. China Central Television (CCTV), the state broadcaster, secured rights months in advance for the 2018 and 2022 tournaments and ran large-scale sponsor ads ahead of the events. It is unusual to have no official contract announcement with only a month to go before kickoff as in this World Cup. Even if a broadcasting deal is struck right now, corporations will have just five weeks to build out transmission infrastructure and complete ad sales.
According to local media including China Daily, FIFA initially asked CCTV for $250 million to $300 million (about 365 billion to 436 billion won) in broadcasting fees. CCTV's own budget was reportedly in the $60 million to $80 million range (about 87 billion to 116 billion won). With such a wide gap, FIFA later lowered its ask to $120 million to $150 million (about 175 billion to 220 billion won), but common ground remains elusive. In China, World Cup broadcasting fees surged from about $115 million (about 167 billion won) for the bundled 2010 and 2014 tournaments to about $300 million (about 436 billion won) for the bundled 2018 and 2022 editions. For CCTV, it is seen as meaning it cannot accept a fee that far exceeds its internal approval cap.
According to FIFA statistics, China was a dominant market during the 2022 Qatar World Cup, accounting for 49.8% of global viewing hours on digital and social platforms. It also ranked No. 1 worldwide in cable TV reach, drawing 510 million viewers. However, unlike the last tournament held in Asia, many marquee matches this time are likely to be scheduled at dawn or early morning in China, in line with the North American host timetable. Ad rates for live broadcasts at dawn are heavily discounted.
Starting with this tournament, FIFA expanded the finals field from 32 to 48 teams and increased the number of matches from 64 to 104. The move was intended to bring national teams from emerging soccer markets like China into the finals and broaden its global footprint. Yet China's national team, despite boasting about 200 million soccer fans, failed to clear even the expanded finals qualification. Its appeal as a nationwide rallying event has dropped sharply. On top of that, delays in issuing visas for on-site reporting crews are raising concerns about broadcast quality.
India is no different. JioStar, the Reliance-Disney joint venture reborn as a massive platform after a merger, offered just $20 million (about 29 billion won) for World Cup broadcasting rights. Considering that the media institutional sector under Reliance secured the rights for the 2022 Qatar tournament for about $60 million (about 87 billion won), the figure has been slashed to one-third. FIFA's expectation for the Indian market was in the $60 million to $100 million range.
India does not consume soccer as content the way China does. The Indian sports media market runs strictly on cricket. Broadcasting rights for the Indian Premier League (IPL) for 2023–2027 traded for a total of $6.2 billion (about 9 trillion won). In addition, with many matches scheduled after midnight in India due to the North American host, the assessment of advertising revenue potential fell further. Apart from JioStar, the remaining corporations dropped out of bidding early on. Experts predicted the buyer side will effectively lead the transaction for India's World Cup rights this time.
By holding the line on fee rates, FIFA has risked losing the largest markets altogether. FIFA projects total income of $8.9 billion for 2026, including the World Cup. Of that, nearly half—$3.9 billion—is the target for broadcasting rights revenue. That is an ambitious figure about one-third higher than for the previous Qatar World Cup. But if FIFA grants steep broadcasting fee discounts to China and India, other emerging markets will have grounds to demand price cuts in succession.
Conversely, if FIFA holds out to the end and this World Cup's broadcasts fall through, the hit to sponsor exposure would be massive. In China, sponsor corporations like Mengniu and Hisense together poured more than about $500 million (about 727 billion won) into this World Cup. Global sponsors like Adidas and Coca-Cola also dislike a scenario where exposure vanishes in China and India, the world's largest markets. Citing experts, Reuters said, "FIFA is at risk of scoring an own goal as a result of overestimating Asian demand."
Experts said there is a high likelihood that CCTV raises its offer to a certain level while FIFA lowers its expectations to around $100 million, or that India's Reliance slightly increases its bid to find common ground. One option floated is to split and sell exclusive live rights and Highlight editing rights separately. Yan Chang, a Chinese sports media expert, said, "FIFA also needs to consider global market commercialization, and China needs to consider the importance of public opinion on the World Cup," adding, "The two sides will ultimately reach a compromise."