SportyTV, a sports broadcasting service, has officially secured the rights to stream all 104 matches of the upcoming FIFA World Cup 2026 in South Africa via pay-TV. This announcement follows just a year after SportyTV entered the South African market. All World Cup matches will be accessible through its dedicated streaming platform.
The service is available through apps on both Android and iOS devices, and it supports a wide range of major TV brands. Currently, viewers need to create a SportyBet account to access SportyTV.
Additionally, SportyTV launched a channel on Openview in 2025, a free-to-view satellite TV platform, but it has confirmed the pay-TV rights for the FIFA World Cup. There hasn’t been a clear statement about whether World Cup matches will be available on Openview.
“After making a significant impact by broadcasting the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, we are now set to showcase the world’s biggest sporting event,” SportyTV stated, emphasising its position in a competitive media environment in Africa.
The company plans to deliver high-quality production to match the scale of the event, with pre- and post-match coverage provided from studios in Cape Town and Madrid. Further details about commentators and football experts will be made public soon. SportyTV will also send production teams to the United States, Canada, and Mexico to follow the South African national team.
“More than just live broadcasts, we aim to implement a comprehensive 360° content strategy, focusing on continuous digital output, engaging storytelling across social media, and real-time interaction with fans,” said Elias Gallego, VP of business development, marketing, and media at SportyGroup.
SportyTV intends to utilise the 2026 World Cup as a showcase for its digital content offerings in South Africa. The platform also provides live content, original programming, and digital-first experiences across South Africa, Ghana, Kenya, and Nigeria.
According to its website, SportyTV’s programming is available on Openview channel 125, and its app has surpassed 5 million downloads across various markets on both Android and iOS.
The company aspires to become the “definitive home” for the FIFA World Cup 2026 in South Africa.
In a recent discussion, veteran television journalist Thinus Ferreira highlighted the challenges facing traditional pay-TV networks like MultiChoice amid increasing competition from OTT streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. Ferreira remarked that to remain relevant, DStv must rethink its strategy to meet the evolving needs of consumers both now and in the future.
Ferreira also noted that rising competitors in the South African market, particularly those with deep pockets, could begin acquiring sports content that traditional pay-TV providers like SuperSport once dominated. From 2010 to 2022, SuperSport held exclusive pay-TV rights to broadcast the FIFA World Cup in the region, but regulations required it to sub-license certain matches to the public broadcaster SABC for free viewing.
As confirmed by FIFA’s latest media partners list, SuperSport retains broadcasting rights for the World Cup in much of sub-Saharan Africa. New World TV has also acquired SABC rights, making it another FIFA broadcasting partner in Africa.
