Two Indian broadcasters, state-owned Doordarshan and the streaming platform FanCode, have secured rights to show matches from the upcoming FIFA Women’s World Cup (WWC) soccer tournament through deals with US-based 1Stadia.
Exclusive rights in the Indian subcontinent for the WWC were acquired by 1Stadia, a company specializing in sports technology and media rights, earlier this month. That tie-up also covered a range of other FIFA events across 2023.
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The WWC runs from July 20 (tomorrow) to August 20 and the 32-team tournament is taking place across Australia and New Zealand. India has not qualified.
Through the sub-licensing tie-up with 1Stadia, FanCode will exclusively stream the tournament's games on its mobile app and via its online site. Match highlights and clips will also be provided.
Doordarshan Sports, meanwhile, will provide linear TV coverage of the tournament through a similar agreement with 1Stadia.
Yannick Colaco, FanCode’s co-founder and chief executive, said: “We are excited to bring one of the biggest global sporting events to Indian fans in association with FIFA and 1Stadia. The tournament is a celebration of women’s football, and we are committed to providing fans with a great experience.”
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By GlobalDataSangeet Shirodkar, co-founder and chief executive at 1Stadia, added: “FanCode’s extensive reach and strength in the IPTV domain make them an ideal partner to deliver the tournament to a wide range of viewers.
“Together with FanCode, we are confident in our ability to captivate and engage eager audiences across India, driving viewership to new heights.”
Gaurav Dwivedi, chief executive at the Prasar Bharati entity which runs Doordarshan, said: “This prestigious tournament not only showcases the immense talent and dedication of women in football but also serves as a platform to inspire the next generation of athletes. We are proud to partner with 1Stadia in this endeavor, as they share our passion for promoting sports and fostering a love for the game among fans."
Rights in India to last year’s men’s World Cup in Qatar were held by media group Viacom18, which aired matches on its streaming platform JioCinema and linear Sports18 channels.
Sony Pictures Networks, meanwhile, held rights to the previous Women’s World Cup, held in France in 2019.
The last few days have seen Japanese broadcaster NHK strike a last-minute coverage deal for the tournament, at which Japan will be present.
In other WWC news, ticket sales for the upcoming edition have now set a record, with close to 1.4 million purchased.
The record ticket sales figure for a WWC up to this point was held by the 2015 edition in Canada.
The three group-stage games featuring Australia are effectively sold out, while demand has also been high for fixtures involving reigning champions US and England.
As context, 64 matches (29 in New Zealand and 35 in Australia) are taking place during this tournament, up from 52 matches played in both France and Canada.
Sarai Bareman, chief women’s soccer officer at FIFA, has said that over 1.5 million people are expected to attend the event in total.
A vast majority of ticket sales – close to 1 million out of 1.3 million – had been bought for games in Australia.
Bareman said last month that there was work to do in terms of New Zealand ticket sales, and last week, 20,000 free tickets to games were issued in the country.
FIFA has said that the Sydney Olympic Stadium in that Australian coastal city which will host the final is effectively sold out for all five games it will stage.
