The world is changing so fast that the next big revolution is going to touch a business that has been immovable for decades: the business of football and its television broadcast. And Apple TV+ could stream the next big football event… and we’re not talking about Ted Lasso.
According to a report from The New York Times, Apple is close to reaching an agreement with FIFA – the governing body of world sports – to obtain the global rights for an expanded version of the Club World Cup that will be held in the United States in 2025.
The Times states that the agreement could amount to over 1 billion dollars and that the official announcement could take place at some point this month.
A very ambitious tournament that Apple wants to have in its expanding service
If the agreement is reached, it would mark Apple’s second major partnership with this sport. In 2022, the company signed a 10-year agreement for the broadcasting rights of Major League Soccer, which received a significant boost a year later with Lionel Messi’s arrival in Miami.
However, the agreement with FIFA would be more remarkable, as the tournament will feature some of the biggest professional teams in the world.
Last year, FIFA detailed the expanded tournament, which will take place over a month, between June and July, and will include 32 teams from Africa, Asia, South America, Oceania, North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Some of the currently qualified clubs are Bayern Munich, Real Madrid, and Manchester City.
The news comes at a time when the sports broadcasting industry is booming: ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery have joined forces to create a new service, Peacock, and Amazon broadcasts NFL games, and even Netflix has entered the live sports broadcasting with a boxing match between Jake Paul and Mike Tyson.
Apple, on the other hand, also launched a dedicated sports application earlier this year and wants to get the NBA.
