BTV to air World Cup at virtually no cost after direct FIFA deal

Bangladesh Television will broadcast the 2026 FIFA World Cup live after the government struck a direct deal with FIFA — almost entirely at no financial burden to the state broadcaster.

State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Yasser Khan Chowdhury made the announcement at a press conference at the Department of Information on Tuesday, saying that the deal was secured through a transparent process that protected public money.

"In the past, there were allegations of huge expenditures to acquire World Cup broadcast rights," he said. "The current government took the initiative to secure those rights transparently, with maximum protection of public funds."

The road to the deal was not straightforward.

Singapore-based Springbok Private Limited had originally purchased the broadcasting rights for Bangladesh from FIFA, but withdrew from the agreement after failing to resell the rights locally — leaving the country without an official broadcaster just under two weeks before the tournament.

At one point, the total cost of acquiring rights from Springbok could have risen to nearly Tk200 crore after VAT and taxes.

The government refused to accept those terms.

Instead, it engaged directly with FIFA — bringing in Bangladesh Football Federation and its president Tabith Awal to facilitate talks.

After prolonged negotiations, a deal was reached at USD3.85m, equivalent to approximately Tk47.25 crore, with the total outlay including VAT and income tax coming to around Tk63.79 crore.

Crucially, BTV will not bear any financial burden for the broadcasts — nearly the entire cost recovered through sub-licensing fees paid by telecom companies, satellite channels and OTT platforms.

All matches will be aired on BTV, T Sports and Somoy TV after the three channels formed a consortium to secure the rights.

OTT platform Toffee will also stream matches live, with Banglalink users able to watch the tournament through the platform.

"The goal of the government is to ensure proper use of public money and keep state institutions engaged in public-welfare services," the State Minister said. "Crores of viewers across Bangladesh will now be able to enjoy World Cup football through BTV."