DistantNews
Support us
FIFA assures South Korea of uninterrupted World Cup broadcasts
🇰🇷 South Korea /Sports

FIFA assures South Korea of uninterrupted World Cup broadcasts

From Dong-A Ilbo · () Korean

Translated from Korean, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources New plan
  • The Korea Football Association confirmed that all World Cup matches, including the final, will be broadcast as scheduled in South Korea.
  • Association president Chung Mong-gyu received assurances from FIFA that broadcasting would proceed without disruption.
  • This clarification follows reports suggesting potential broadcast interruptions due to unpaid fees by JTBC, the domestic rights holder.

The Korea Football Association has officially confirmed that all matches of the 2026 World Cup, including the final, will be broadcast in South Korea as planned. This assurance comes after concerns arose regarding potential disruptions to domestic broadcasts due to unpaid fees by JTBC, the rights holder.

The Korea Football Association announced today that it received confirmation from FIFA that all World Cup matches in Korea will be broadcast as scheduled.

— Korea Football AssociationConfirming the broadcasting status.

Chung Mong-gyu, the president of the Korea Football Association, directly addressed the issue by contacting FIFA. He spoke with FIFA Secretary General Matthias Grafstrom to assess the situation and requested cooperation to ensure South Korean fans could enjoy the tournament without interruption. FIFA subsequently confirmed that the domestic rights holder would broadcast all matches as scheduled.

The controversy was ignited by Japanese media reports, specifically from TBS, which claimed that JTBC had failed to pay a portion of its broadcasting fees to FIFA. These reports suggested that domestic broadcasts could be halted from the round of 32 if payments were not made by the deadline. JTBC has since issued a statement clarifying that all matches, including the final, will be broadcast without issue, urging the public to disregard misinformation.

We requested cooperation to ensure that Korean football fans can enjoy the World Cup without any problems.

— Chung Mong-gyuSpeaking with FIFA Secretary General Matthias Grafstrom.

The KFA's confirmation, backed by FIFA's assurances, effectively dispels concerns about broadcast interruptions. The South Korean men's national team is currently competing in the tournament, with their next match scheduled against South Africa.

All matches of the 2026 North, Central America World Cup will be broadcast without disruption.

— JTBCOfficial statement addressing broadcasting concerns.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dong-A Ilbo in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog