JTBC Gears Up for 2026 FIFA World Cup Broadcast Amid Criticism

With just 100 days left until the kickoff of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in North America, JTBC is ramping up its preparations for broadcasting the event and producing special content. Previously, JTBC faced criticism for not live broadcasting Korea's first gold medal moment at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, despite having exclusive broadcasting rights. JTBC has secured exclusive broadcasting rights for the 2026-2032 Summer and Winter Olympics and the 2026-2030 FIFA World Cup.

The upcoming World Cup will be jointly hosted by Canada, the United States, and Mexico from June 11 to July 19, marking the first-ever three-country co-hosted tournament, following the first two-country co-hosted event, the Korea-Japan World Cup.

This tournament will see an expansion from 32 to 48 participating countries, introducing a 32-team knockout stage. The group stage will consist of 12 groups of four teams each, with the top two teams from each group and the top eight third-placed teams advancing to the knockout stage.

South Korea has been placed in Group A alongside host nation Mexico, South Africa, and the winner of the European Playoff D (Denmark, Czech Republic, Ireland, North Macedonia). They will face the European Playoff D winner on June 12 at 11 AM KST, Mexico on June 19 at 10 AM KST, and South Africa on June 25 at 10 AM KST, with all matches taking place in Mexico.

JTBC is committed to enhancing accessibility for viewers by negotiating to ensure that more people can watch the World Cup through various channels. The network aims to strengthen viewers' 'right to watch' while ensuring that the athletes who have worked hard receive the attention they deserve. JTBC is actively engaging in negotiations to reach swift agreements.

Kim Se-ah, Ten Asia Reporter haesmik@tenasia.co.kr