Sportfive, the international sports marketing agency, has snapped up third-party media rights to Brazil and Argentina's home qualifiers for soccer's 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The agency now holds third-party rights outside the Americas for all home qualifiers played by the two heavyweight nations (with Argentina having won last year’s FIFA World Cup in Qatar), and additionally will oversee rights for all home friendly matches played by Brazil in that time period.
Sportfive has struck deals for these rights with the agencies of Brax in Brazil and Torneos in Argentina.
Sportfive has said the acquisition “not only showcases Sportfive’s commitment to elevating the global visibility of these esteemed national teams but also highlights the agency's dedication to offering unparalleled sporting content to fans across the world.”
Brazil’s first home qualifier comes on Friday (September 8), as the five-time World Cup winners take on Bolivia in Belém, while Argentina’s home qualifying campaign gets underway tomorrow (September 7), against Ecuador.
Thomas Klingebiel, president for media at Sportfive, said: “We are thrilled to have secured these exclusive media rights for the South American World Cup qualifiers. This agreement reinforces Sportfive’s commitment to delivering top-tier sports content to a global audience. The passion and fervor of South American soccer are unmatched, and we are proud to play a role in bringing this excitement to fans worldwide.”
Late last month (August), Brazilian heavyweight broadcaster Globo snapped up rights to 81 of the 90 World Cup qualification fixtures in the South American zone, with the only exception being Bolivia’s home games.
All these fixtures will be exclusively shown by the Sportv network run by Globo, through deals the network has struck with Mediapro and Brax.
In Bolivia, meanwhile, the country's soccer federation (FBF) has recently legally secured rights to its own home qualifiers, after winning a court judgment in a case against Mediapro and fellow agency Sports TV Rights.
The home games have been put in a category of ‘constitutional protection’ by a La Paz court, meaning they do not need to be sold to an agency and can instead be shown by the FBF itself, via its own streaming platform.
