Why Kenyans could miss watching 2026 World Cup on free-to-air TV
Kenyans may miss out on watching the 2026 Fifa World Cup on free-to-air television.
With just 15 days to the tournament, national broadcaster Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) has yet to secure rights to beam the tournament live in the country.
The expanded global showpiece will run from June 11th to July 19th in the United States, Canada and Mexico and will feature 104 matches across 16 host cities.
Traditionally, KBC has aired World Cup matches on free-to-air television, allowing millions of football fans across the country to follow the tournament live in their homes and public places.
However, a senior official at the national broadcaster confirmed on Tuesday that they had not secured any broadcast rights deal.
“We will know in a week’s time. We are still finalising the deal as negotiations continue,” the official, who did not want to be named, told Nation Sports.
Fifa regulations require host broadcasters and national rights holders to air a selected number of World Cup matches on free-to-air television, although the number varies from country to country depending on local broadcasting rules.
During the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar, KBC secured the exclusive free-to-air broadcast rights for the tournament in Kenya.
The state-owned broadcaster showed 28 selected matches out of the 64 played during the competition across its television platforms. The televised matches mainly featured African teams during the group stage, as well as fixtures from the round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final.
In addition, all 64 World Cup matches were broadcast live on the radio through KBC’s 12 radio stations. However, the value of the broadcast rights deal was not disclosed.
Fans intending to follow this year’s tournament online may also have to rely on official Fifa streaming platforms or other digital viewing options expected to be announced closer to the tournament.
Should KBC fail to secure an agreement with Fifa, Kenyan football fans may have to rely on pay-TV providers to follow the tournament.
SuperSport has already confirmed that it will air all the matches on its sports channels available on DStv and GOtv platforms, giving subscribers full tournament coverage.
On DStv, fans will watch every Fifa World Cup match live on Premium, which has a monthly subscription rate of Sh11,700. Other packages offering live World Cup broadcast are Compact Plus (Sh7,300), Compact (Sh4,200), Family (Sh2,250), and Access (Sh1,450).
Viewers will also be able to watch the tournament live online through the DStv Stream app on mobile devices and smart TVs.
Meanwhile, Tanzania-based Azam TV has announced that it has secured broadcasting rights for the tournament across East Africa.
The pay-TV broadcaster announced on Tuesday that it will hold a press conference at its headquarters in Nairobi to officially unveil its World Cup coverage plans.
The event will be addressed by the company’s Country Head, Ravi Kumar, who is expected to outline Azam TV’s viewer experience, tournament programming, and regional broadcast strategy for football fans in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.
Fifa confirmed in March a major change to its broadcast strategy for the 2026 World Cup that will allow fans to watch selected content for free on YouTube for the first time.
The arrangement will permit official broadcasters to stream portions of matches live on YouTube, potentially expanding the tournament’s reach to millions of additional viewers worldwide.
For the first time in the competition’s history, fans will be able to watch the opening 10 minutes of every World Cup match live on the platform.
Broadcasters will also be allowed to air a select number of full matches on their YouTube channels. The move is aimed at giving fans a free preview of the action before directing viewers to traditional television coverage for the remainder of the matches.
With this, Fifa is targeting younger audiences who increasingly consume football online. The world governing body believes that the collaboration will help attract a new generation of supporters.
Fifa Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom said in March: “Fifa is delighted to welcome YouTube as a preferred platform for the World Cup 2026.”
YouTube’s Global Head of Media and Sports, Justin Connolly, added: “YouTube is focused on delivering a global, fan-centric, interactive approach to sports entertainment, and we are proud to be a preferred platform for the World Cup 2026. Whether you’re a hardcore or casual fan, this partnership will help usher in the next generation of fans.”
China Media Group (CMG), the predominant state media company for radio and television broadcasting in the People’s Republic of China, last week secured broadcasting rights for four upcoming Fifa tournaments, including the 2026 and 2030 Men’s World Cups and 2027 and 2031 Fifa Women’s World Cups.
CMG acquired exclusive rights for mainland China in a deal reportedly worth about $60 million (Sh7.76 billion), significantly lower than Fifa’s initial asking price of between $250 million (Sh32.37 billion) and $300 million (Sh38.85 billion).
Fifa also said the partnership is expected to support China’s youth football development strategy, with the country’s men’s and women’s Under-17 teams having qualified for their respective World Cup tournaments this year.
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