CBS, the US sports network, has today acquired exclusive domestic rights to major competitions organised by the Asian Football Confederation, the governing body for soccer, until 2024.
Under a three-year, multi-platform deal, Paramount+, ViacomCBS’ new subscription streaming service, will provide coverage of more than 300 matches from AFC club and national team competitions.
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The coverage will begin in September with Asian qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
The platform will also air the remainder of the 2021 AFC Champions League from the knockout stage matches through to the final in November, and will remain home of Asia’s top clubs competition each season until 2024.
It will additionally show the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup 2023 as part of the contract.
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The agreement also includes rights in Canada and Bermuda as well as certain overseas US territories, which include AFC member associations Guam and Northern Mariana Islands.
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By GlobalDataCBS Sports Digital will deliver additional coverage and original programming and feature highlights across social channels and CBS Sports HQ, the 24/7 streaming sports news network.
The agreement was brokered on behalf of the AFC by Football Marketing Asia, the Hong Kong-based agency that is selling commercial rights to the competitions outside of the Middle East in the 2021-24 and 2025-28 cycles.
Windsor John, the AFC general secretary, said today: “The AFC is delighted to enter into this partnership with CBS Sports, which represents another progressive step towards increasing the visibility and consumption of the AFC’s competitions beyond our continent.
“We look forward to working with CBS Sports in growing the fanbase of the AFC’s competitions in the vibrant North American market as well as in the AFC’s territories in Guam and Northern Mariana Islands and we thank them for believing in the future of Asian football.”
Jeffrey Gerttula, executive vice-president and general manager of CBS Sports Digital, added: “The addition of Asian Football further elevates our extensive lineup of live soccer coverage on Paramount+. Offering matches from this expansive region provides even more value by delivering year-round soccer coverage at a time of day where the sport traditionally isn’t offered to American fans.”
With the addition of AFC competitions, Paramount+ will now show more than 1,600 live soccer matches each year after concluding a raft of rights deals in recent months.
It secured exclusive English-language rights to Brazil’s top-tier Campeonato Brasileirão last month, which added to a portfolio which already includes Concacaf national team competitions, Uefa European club competitions, Italy's top-flight Serie A, Argentina's Liga Profesional de Futbol, and the USA's National Women's Soccer League.
The AFC has also signed a host of global broadcast rights deals recently including with Fanseat in various European countries such as France, Belgium, Portugal and Nordic territories, LaLigaSportsTV in Spain and Andorra, StarTimes in sub-Saharan Africa, and the Saudi Sports Company in the Middle Eastern country.
