‘Not our responsibility’: Prasar Bharati on FIFA World Cup 2026 broadcast rights in India

Indian public broadcaster Prasar Bharati has reportedly told the Delhi High Court that it is "not responsible" for acquiring the TV rights of the FIFA World Cup 2026 in India. The submission was made during the hearing of a petition seeking free-to-air telecast of the tournament through Prasar Bharati.

According to Bar and Bench, the petition was filed by advocate Avdhesh Bairwa, who argued that Indian football fans should have access to the FIFA World Cup on public broadcasting platforms. This comes amid the ongoing deadlock between FIFA and Indian broadcasters over the rights to the World Cup.

During the hearing, the petitioner sought permission to withdraw the plea with liberty to approach another competent court for appropriate relief. Earlier on May 12, the court had issued notices to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and Prasar Bharati regarding the matter.

The petition had requested authorities to ensure telecast of at least the opening match, quarter-finals, semi-finals and final of the tournament on free-to-air television. It also sought directions for securing rights for all 104 matches of the competition.

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The FIFA World Cup 2026 will be jointly hosted by United States, Canada and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, 2026. With just days to go, Indian fans still do not have any clarity on whether they will be able to watch the tournament.

According to the petition, India is one of FIFA’s biggest viewership markets. The petitioner cited nearly 745.7 million interactions during the 2022 FIFA World Cup and argued that Indian fans should not be denied access to such a major sporting event.

Why has FIFA not found a broadcast partner in India yet?

The case comes at a time when uncertainty still remains over the Indian broadcasting rights for the tournament. Reports earlier suggested that FIFA initially demanded nearly $100 million for the combined media rights of the 2026 and 2030 World Cups in India. However, the governing body later reportedly reduced the asking price after receiving limited interest from broadcasters.

According to reports, the Reliance Industries-Disney joint venture JioStar had offered around 20 million US dollars for the rights, but the bid was rejected. JioHotstar had the rights for the 2022 edition as well.

One of the major concerns for broadcasters is the tournament timing. Since the World Cup is being held in North America, many matches will take place late at night or early morning according to Indian time, which could affect television viewership and advertising revenue.