February 14 – Streaming platform DAZN and US Spanish-language broadcaster Univision have agreed a sublicense deal for 18 Club World Cup matches across its channels.
Univision will broadcast matches from the expanded 32-team tournament in June and July on its Univision, UniMás and TUDN networks.
The Club World Cup has struggled to generate much interest from broadcasters, but DAZN bailed FIFA out stepping in to acquire the rights for the 2025 and 2029 editions of the tournament for a reported $1 billion.
“DAZN’s wide-ranging partnership with TelevisaUnivision is an important part of our distribution strategy for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, and will ensure that every soccer fan in the U.S. can watch the tournament how they want,” said DAZN CEO Shay Segev in a statement.
“As well as delivering top-quality programming, we look forward to collaborating on marketing and ad sales, creating an unparalleled offering for brands and audiences alike.”
DAZN’s own financial woes have been remarkable. In 2023, the company posted operating losses of $830 million for 2023, raising further question marks over the financial sustainability of the sports streaming service and its ability to secure premium live rights.
DAZN reported losses of $1.2 billion in 2022, $2.3 billion in 2021 and $1.3 billion in 2020. However, SURJ, an investment arm of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, will reportedly invest $1 billion in DAZN. That money is understood to be provided on the condition that it underwrites the FIFA CWC acquisition.
“As soccer continues to build significant momentum in the U.S., brands will have a unique opportunity to tap into the passion of this sport, bridging sports and culture together to engage with Hispanic consumers,” said Olek Loewenstein, president of global sports at TelevisaUnivision.
With a matter of months until the Club World Cup’s kickoff, an English-language sublicensing deal has not been announced yet.
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