FIFA waived 80% of its financial claims » 1.4 billion people will be able to watch the World Cup

World soccer's governing body dropped its $300 million demand, dropping the price by 80 percent to $60 million. Thus, the final tournament can be watched by the approximately 1.4 billion Chinese citizens, according to Polymarket Sports.

FIFA has reached an agreement with China for the World Cup television rights

After all, this summer's World Cup will be available to watch in China on state-run China Central Television (CCTV). The station initially refused to pay the sum of $300 million, which was roughly double the price for the 2022 World Cup.

China's national team missed out on qualifying for the World Cup for the sixth time in a row. In addition, around 70% of the matches will be broadcast at night or early morning due to the time zone difference, which means a smaller audience and weaker advertising revenue.

According to FIFA data, the previous edition of the World Cup was watched by more than 500 million people on TV and a similar number of fans online.

2026 World Cup groups

• Group A: Mexico, South Africa, South Korea, Czech Republic

• Group B: Canada, Bosnia, Qatar, Switzerland

• Group C: Brazil, Morocco, Haiti, Scotland

• Group D: USA, Paraguay, Australia, Turkey

• Group E: Germany, Curacao, Ivory Coast, Ecuador

• Group F: The Netherlands, Japan, Sweden, Tunisia

• Group G: Belgium, Egypt, Iran, New Zealand

• Group H: Spain, Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia, Uruguay

• Group I: France, Iraq, Senegal, Norway

• Group J: Argentina, Algeria, Austria, Jordan

• Group K: Portugal, DR Congo, Uzbekistan, Colombia

• Group L: England, Croatia, Ghana, Panama

The World Cup will start on June 11, from 22:00, and the opening match will be between Mexico and South Africa. The grand final will take place on July 19, in New York.