FIFA has rejected a Reliance-Disney joint venture bid of $20 million for the 2026 World Cup broadcast rights, a fraction of FIFA’s demand. It means millions of football fans in the world’s most populous country may not be able to watch the World Cup, which starts next month, because of a deadlock over broadcasting rights in India.
According to a Reuters report, Sony was also in talks with the Reliance-Disney JV but decided not to bid for the expensive rights for India.
China, too, remains undecided about FIFA’s highly prized asset. China, which according to FIFA accounted for 49.8% of all viewing hours on digital and social platforms worldwide during the 2022 World Cup.
FIFA has agreements with broadcasters in more than 175 territories around the world, it said in a statement to Reuters. “Discussions in China and India regarding the sale of media rights for the 2026 FIFA World Cup are ongoing and must remain confidential at this stage,” the statement said. India still does not have the rights to broadcast the FIFA World Cup in the country (Screenshot from X)
Reliance-Disney, the joint venture led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance, did not respond to requests for comment, according to the report, as did Sony.
The lack of a confirmed broadcast deal with India or China is unusual at this stage. In past World Cups, including 2018 and 2022, China’s state broadcaster CCTV secured the rights well in advance and began airing sponsor-driven promotional content and ads weeks before the tournament. CCTV, which has an extensive reach across television and digital platforms, did not immediately return a request for comment. China accounted for 17.7% and India for 2.9% of the global linear TV reach for the 2022 tournament. The two countries combined accounted for 22.6% of the total global digital streaming reach for this World Cup.
The 2026 tournament begins on June 11, leaving just five weeks to seal deals, set up broadcast infrastructure and sell advertising inventory.
GIANT FOOTBALL IN INDIA, CHINA
For India, FIFA initially demanded $100 million for broadcasting rights for the 2026 and 2030 World Cups, said the sources, who declined to be named because the talks are private. When the FIFA World Cup was last broadcast in India in 2022, the then standalone media group Reliance secured the rights for around $60 million, which was announced around 14 months before the event in Qatar.
“FIFA is looking for a similar amount for this year’s tournament,” a FIFA source said.
Reliance and Disney have since formed a joint venture that has become a dominant force in India’s media and streaming landscape, and FIFA’s $20 million bid underscores the bargaining power the Indian group wields. The report adds that FIFA had earlier significantly reduced its demand from $100 million but was not keen on the $20 million offered by Reliance.
Reliance-Disney, which has spent billions on cricket broadcasting rights, believes the World Cup will have lower viewership in India as the tournament is being held in the United States, Canada and Mexico and most of the matches will be telecast in India after midnight. China has around 200 million soccer fans, more than any other country, but has failed to build world-class teams, partly because of a top-down approach where clubs select players from a very small pool of pre-vetted candidates.
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Published on:
04 May 2026 22:30 IST
