AzamTV, the Tanzania-based pay-TV broadcaster, has snapped up rights in eight East African markets to soccer’s upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup men’s flagship tournament.
The new agreement will see AzazmTV air all 104 games live across Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and Rwanda, with its coverage to include ancillary programming featuring expert analysis throughout the tournament.
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This year’s edition is being jointly hosted by the US, Mexico, and Canada between June 11 and July 19 and will feature an expanded field of 48 national teams.
The deal adds to FIFA’s official broadcast partner slate in Africa, with Togo-based satellite TV network New World TV securing sub-Saharan rights to the 2026 World Cup and women’s 2027 edition last June.
New World TV’s rights cover 43 territories, including Angola, Cameroon, Congo DR, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe.
Last month, African sports media platform SportyTV also secured pay-TV rights to the tournament in South Africa, with the broadcaster to air all matches on its OTT platform and mobile app.
Free-to-air rights to this year’s World Cup are held in South Africa by public-service broadcaster SABC after it struck a sub-license deal with soccer rightsholder New World TV in December.
Elsewhere in Africa, the Government of Ghana has acquired broadcast rights for the tournament, which it will air live across selected media platforms in the country.
The deal has been funded, in part, by a GHS 5 million ($442,789) donation from financial institution GCB Bank, with the country’s Minister for Sports and Recreation, Kofi Adams, announcing the rights agreement during the donation ceremony yesterday.
Adams said: “Through the support of government and fundraising efforts, we have been able to secure broadcast rights to telecast the World Cup matches live on some of the media stations.”
The GCB Bank donation is part of a wider national funding drive to support Ghana’s ‘Black Stars’ national team as it prepares to participate in the tournament, with corporate organizations and stakeholders urged to contribute.
This edition will be Ghana’s fifth appearance at a FIFA World Cup, with the team drawn in Group L alongside England, Croatia, and Panama.
The Black Stars will open their campaign against Panama in Toronto, Canada, on June 17, before playing England on June 23 and Croatia on June 27.
