Zee Entertainment Enterprises, rebranding itself as ‘Z’, has secured broadcast and digital rights for 39 FIFA events in India, covering competitions from 2026 through 2034.
The deal gives the company exclusive access to football’s most valuable global properties, including the FIFA World Cup 2026, the tournament’s centenary edition in 2030, and the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027.
Coverage begins on June 11, 2026, when the World Cup kicks off, across four newly launched dedicated sports channels, Unite8 Sports 1, Unite8 Sports 1 HD, Unite8 Sports 2, and Unite8 Sports 2 HD, as well as the company’s streaming platform ZEE5.
The multi-language, multi-platform approach is designed to reach audiences across the country’s linguistic and geographic breadth.
Beyond the flagship tournaments, the rights package spans youth and futsal competitions across multiple cycles, including the FIFA Men’s and Women’s U-17 World Cups from 2026 to 2034, and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup from 2026 to 2030. The company has also acquired rights to documentary series covering each tournament, adding behind-the-scenes and grassroots content alongside live action.
“We are excited to bring one of the world’s biggest sporting spectacles to Indian audiences. Football cuts across regions and demographics, and the investments in garnering the media rights and launching dedicated sports channels, reflect our clear belief in its long-term potential. Our approach has been to invest in properties where we see current relevance and future growth potential. Our partnership with FIFA will enable us to unlock the true value of the sport in line with our sharp focus on growth and profitability, while amplifying the excitement of the game for every fan,” Punit Goenka, CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. said in a statement.
“The FIFA World Cup is the greatest show on earth, and we are glad to partner with ‘Z’ for the first time, to bring this global spectacle to India. The Indian market is of strategic importance for FIFA as it displays immense potential driven by a young and passionate audience. We believe the extensive broadcast and digital distribution ecosystem of ‘Z’ coupled with their deep understanding of local viewers and multi-platform capabilities will play a pivotal role in expanding the reach of football with fans across every part of India,” Romy Gai, FIFA Chief Business Officer added.
“The partnership with FIFA marks a significant step in our journey to create a strong foundation in the sports ecosystem to drive long-term value creation. Football as a sport has tremendous under-leveraged potential in a country like India and we see a massive opportunity in unlocking its mass appeal for billions of viewers across the Nation. Our approach in the sports business is anchored in building a scalable and financially sustainable growth model through a disciplined capital allocation framework. We view sports as a powerful catalyst to unlock long-term economic and social value by translating the growing passion for sports to contribute meaningfully towards the Nation’s aspirations,” Mukund Galgali, Deputy CEO & Chief Financial Officer, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. further explained.
The deal sits within a broader push by Zee to build out a diversified sports portfolio that already includes cricket and kabaddi rights on its Unite8 Sports channels. The company pointed to football’s historically low media penetration in India as the central commercial opportunity, noting that the national team last qualified for the Olympics in 1960.
