FIFA World Cup 2026 | Who will broadcast it live in India? What we know so far

Most of the plum fixtures are at 12.30 am or 3.30 am and a few at 6.30 am, a slot at which monetisation opportunities for channels is very less.

With less than a month to go for the FIFA World Cup 2026, uncertainty continues as to who will broadcast it live in India, with the issue reaching the court.

Till date, no broadcaster has acquired the rights for the tournament to be held from from June 11 to July 19 in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.

It is worth mentioning that the Delhi High Court sought the stand of the Central government and Prasar Bharati on a petition seeking the broadcast of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

Avdhesh Bairwa, a lawyer, sought directions to the Central government to acquire the broadcasting rights for the opening match, quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final in favour of Prasar Bharati as an interim measure. By way of final relief, the petitioner prayed that rights should be acquired for all 104 matches.

Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav issued notice on the petition and listed it for hearing on May 20.

However, the game's global governing body said that negotiations are still on.

"Discussions in India regarding sale of media rights for FIFA World Cup 2026 are ongoing and must remain confidential at this stage," a FIFA statement read.

The deadlock is reportedly over the offer prize.

It is presumed that FIFA is ready to climb down on its offer price from $100m to $35m. However leading broadcasters in India had placed a bid around $20m, which the game's global governing body was not willing to accept, citing the fact that Qatar 2022 World Cup was sold at $35m.

It may be recalled that the Qatar 2022 World Cup set a record with over 110 million viewers consuming content digitally on JioCinema.

According to insiders, JioHotstar is still in advanced talks with FIFA to bring home globe's ultimate showpiece event.

The reluctance on the part of the major broadcasters in India to bid for television rights is the match timings.

Most of the plum fixtures kick off at 12.30 am IST or 3.30 am and a few at 6.30 am, a slot at which monetisation opportunities for channels is very less.

Still, swathes of football fans in India are not losing out on hope and expect one of the main broadcasters to ink a deal.