Fox Sports holds English-language U.S. rights through the 2026 tournament—a deal signed in 2011 for $425 million covering two cycles. That contract expires the moment Lionel Messi or his successor lifts the trophy in MetLife Stadium, and the bidding window for 2030 and 2034 opens in early 2027. People close to the process expect the next cycle to clear $1 billion for U.S. rights alone, nearly triple the inflation-adjusted value of the current deal.
The math changed in three places. First, the tournament expanded from 32 to 48 teams, adding 24 matches and 10 additional days of inventory. Second, co-hosting across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico guarantees favorable time zones and eliminates the offshore logistics that suppressed ratings in Qatar and Russia. Third, the 2026 group stage averaged 2.8 million viewers per match on Fox and Telemundo, double internal projections and the highest since 1994. Sponsors are pricing the final in New Jersey at Super Bowl rates; Visa and Anheuser-Busch already locked extensions through 2030.
Streaming platforms sat out the last auction. This time, Amazon, Apple, and Netflix are building live-sports infrastructure, and each has held quiet meetings with FIFA's media advisory team at Endeavor. The league-rights playbook—bifurcate linear and streaming, sell different match windows—doesn't map cleanly to a tournament with knockout urgency, but FIFA is studying a structure that splits group-stage inventory from the round of 16 onward. One scenario under discussion: a traditional broadcaster takes marquee matches while a streamer captures the expanded group stage, creating a $600 million linear package and a $400 million streaming tier. FIFA has not committed to the structure.
Telemundo, which paid $600 million for Spanish-language rights through 2026, faces internal pressure. Peacock added 4.1 million subscribers during the tournament, but churn spiked 68% in the two weeks after the final, erasing half the gain. NBCUniversal executives are weighing whether soccer delivers sticky subscriptions or expensive one-time traffic. Univision, flush with private-equity backing from Searchlight Capital and ForgeLight, is preparing a joint bid with a tech partner, likely Google or Apple. The company hasn't held FIFA rights since 2014 but sees the demo math—62% of U.S. viewers under 35 watched Spanish-language coverage—as worth the spend.
Canadian rights, historically an afterthought, are now material. TSN and RDS paid $35 million for 2026; the next cycle could approach $150 million as Vancouver and Toronto host matches and the men's national team qualifies for consecutive tournaments. Mexico's Televisa secured rights through 2026 for $185 million, but the company is splitting into content and telecom units, and the content side is hunting for a U.S. partner to spread risk. A combined North American package—one buyer across all three territories—would simplify FIFA's process but requires the kind of balance-sheet depth only Amazon or Apple can deploy cleanly.
FIFA will begin soliciting bids in March 2027, with a decision expected by October. The organization is also selling a global highlights package separately, a $120 million product aimed at YouTube and TikTok. The key variable is whether the 2030 tournament, awarded to Spain, Portugal, and Morocco with ceremonial matches in South America, maintains the time-zone advantage or reverts to morning kickoffs that suppress U.S. ratings. If Europe-friendly windows return, the streaming bid weakens and Fox or NBC regain leverage. If FIFA commits to Americas-friendly scheduling for 2034—Saudi Arabia is the only declared bidder—the $1 billion floor becomes the opening number, not the ceiling.
The takeaway
FIFA's 2026 World Cup rights expire with U.S. ratings doubled and streamers finally bidding—**$1 billion** is the new floor for English-language U.S. deals.
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