June 16 – FIFA has handed control of its struggling FIFA+ digital streaming platform to DAZN, in a new long-term partnership that will see the sports streaming service operate and develop the product globally, announced on Saturday.
This builds on the company’s exclusive coverage of the 2025 Club World Cup in the US and their strong relationship with football’s governing body at a time when many of their regular broadcast partners have turned their backs on the expanded tournament.
The deal puts DAZN in charge of a platform FIFA pitched as its own Netflix-style destination for global football content in a loud and hugely promoted launch in 2022, FIFA+ has struggled to gain significant numbers of users and lacked clarity over its role within FIFA’s wider media rights strategy with many of its big broadcast buyers asking if FIFA wanted to become a broadcaster rather than a rights owner.
Under the new agreement, DAZN will power and distribute FIFA+, which will stream all 32 matches of the Club World Cup, alongside shoulder content including a daily studio show titled The Press. DAZN will also provide an ongoing news service and access to FIFA archives and original content after the tournament.
While presented as a strategic alignment of two “influential brands,” the reality is more pragmatic. For FIFA, the deal outsources a ballooning drain on their finances and an underperforming direct-to-consumer product to a partner with actual streaming expertise and an existing global user base. For DAZN, it provides exclusive inventory at a time when it is under pressure to grow its subscriber base and justify its premium pricing.
Shay Segev, DAZN Group CEO, remarked: “This partnership with FIFA cements DAZN’s role as the ultimate digital destination for football, allowing fans everywhere to access a vast, premium football content library. Together with FIFA’s brand and reach, we will deliver an unmatched entertainment experience, supporting FIFA’s vision of expanding the game’s global footprint and engaging new audiences.”
FIFA Secretary General Mattias Grafström said: “At FIFA, we are proud to always be looking towards the future, looking at how to innovate, with the specific aim of protecting and nurturing the growth of our game for the generations ahead. This partnership with DAZN aligns exactly with that objective. Their vision is global, as is ours, and we look forward to furthering our collaboration with them through FIFA+ as the ‘Home of Football’.”
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at moc.l1750105613labto1750105613ofdlr1750105613owedi1750105613sni@g1750105613niwe.1750105613yrrah1750105613