The 2026 FIFA World Cup is just 8 days away and even a couple of days back, India did not have an official broadcaster for football's biggest tournament. Fans in India were growing impatient as the possibility of not being able to watch the World Cup live was getting real.
India has billions of football fans who wait with bated breath for the World Cup, accounting for a significant percentage of global viewership. Fortunately, a solution has been reached and the country has an official broadcaster for the biggest FIFA World Cup till date.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is being jointly hosted by Mexico, Canada and the United States. With an enlarged 48-team format for the first time ever, it is indeed a historic tournament.
A total of 104 matches will be played throughout the tournament. According to IST, the World Cup will kick off on June 12, 2026 at 12:30 am and will end with the final, to be played on July 20 at 12:30 am.
After much uncertainty, Zee Entertainment has finally secured the media rights for the 2026 World Cup and will broadcast the tournament in India. Fans can catch all the 104 matches live which will be telecast on Zee's brand new sports channels:
Unite8 Sports 1
Unite8 Sports 1 HD
Unite8 Sports 2
Unite8 Sports 2 HD
All the matches will also be live-streamed on the Zee5 app, making it possible for people to watch the matches on their personal electronic devices.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is being hosted by multiple cities across three countries. The primary kick-off slots in India will be: 12:30 am, 3:30 am, 6:30 am and 9:30 pm IST.
Zee to broadcast major FIFA events in India until 2034
Zee Entertainment announced that according to the terms agreed upon with FIFA, it will broadcast 38 other major FIFA tournaments till 2034 including the 2030 FIFA World Cup and 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup.
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