Netflix signals interest in FIFA men’s World Cup rights
Netflix has signalled it wants to compete for future FIFA men’s World Cup rights, positioning the event as a rare global property that fits its live sports strategy.
Netflix vice-president of sports Gabe Spitzer has confirmed the streamer expects to be in discussions about FIFA men’s World Cup rights beyond the current US deal held by Fox, a clear marker that Netflix is preparing to move deeper into top-tier football inventory.Spitzer’s comments come as the industry starts to look past FIFA World Cup 2026, the last men’s edition covered under Fox’s existing agreement in the United States.Netflix already has a foothold in FIFA’s ecosystem after securing US rights to the 2027 and 2031 FIFA Women’s World Cups, a package that gives the platform a major tentpole property and a live production runway across multiple languages.Spitzer indicated the men’s event fits Netflix’s preference for scarce, high-impact rights rather than weekly schedules, while also aligning with its push to think globally rather than buying market by market.Gabe Spitzer said: “I think with any big event, we want to have the conversation. And I think we want to also want to make sure we’re not just looking at it from the U.S. lens.”He also linked the approach to Netflix’s pursuit of rights that can work across multiple territories, signalling that global scope is becoming a bigger internal driver than it has been in past sports negotiations.Spitzer added: “More and more, we’re thinking about it as what truly is our global sports strategy? And we want global rights when we can get them.”Netflix has been building a portfolio that mixes premium event programming with targeted local rights, including baseball and football properties in specific markets, plus the global WWE deal that starts in 2025 in many territories.That blend matters in a FIFA context because men’s World Cup rights are sold country by country, which can make a global bid complex and expensive, even if it offers a compelling product story for a streamer with worldwide scale.Spitzer pointed to the men’s tournament cycle as a natural conversation point around 2030, effectively placing Netflix on the shortlist of credible bidders for the next US cycle.The signal also increases pressure on incumbent broadcasters, with any renewal now likely to be priced against not only traditional networks but also streamers willing to treat the World Cup as a subscriber acquisition engine and a global brand statement.FIFA’s next US rights decision will shape more than distribution, with the winning strategy likely to hinge on the balance between reach, production ambition, platform marketing power and the ability to package advertisers around a month-long event.