FIFA president Gianni Infantino has hinted that several countries could be blocked from watching this year's Women's World Cup after receiving 'disappointing' offers from broadcasters for television rights.
The start of the World Cup tournament is less than three months away and will kick off in Australia and New Zealand on 20 July and end on 20 August, with Vera Pauw’s Ireland set to face Australia (20 July), Canada (26 July) and Nigeria (31 July) in Group B.
Infantino went on the attack again on Monday, 1 May 2023, at the World Trade Organization in Geneva, describing the offers received from Britain, Spain, Italy, Germany and France as a "slap in the face" and called for a “fair price” for media rights.
Fifa is yet to sell rights for the tournament to some major markets, football’s governing body said in a statement.
Infantino revealed that offers in the region of between $1 million (€910,000) and $10 million (€9.1m) to show the Women’s World Cup, compared to the $100-200 million (€91-182m) they pay for the men’s version.
Because of the time difference, World Cup matches will not take place during prime-time hours in Europe, but Infantino said that was no excuse.
“Maybe, because it is in Australia and New Zealand, it’s not played on prime time in Europe, but still, it is played at 9:00 am or 10:00 am, so it is quite a reasonable time,” he said.
“To be very clear, it is our moral and legal obligation not to undersell the FIFA Women’s World Cup," Infantino said. “Therefore, should the offers continue not to be fair, we will be forced not to broadcast the FIFA Women’s World Cup into the ‘big five’ European countries. Public broadcasters in particular have a duty to promote and invest in women’s sport. Women deserve it. Simple as that.”
