FIFA and the African Union of Broadcasters (AUB) have signed a co-operation agreement that will allow sub-Saharan countries to view the 2010 FIFA World Cup free of charge.
The AUB is dedicated to broadcasting development and content exchange in sub-Saharan Africa. According to the agreement, the AUB will ensure all 64 World Cup matches are distributed and broadcast live on free-to-air TV and radio in 41 areas. The broadcasts will take place in English, French and Portuguese.
FIFA President Sepp Blatter says: “The AUB has shown considerable strengths in uniting broadcasters under one umbrella to ensure all sub-Saharan Africans will be able to have access to the radio and TV coverage of and around the 2010 FIFA World Cup. We always promised that 2010 would be an African World Cup, and with today's co-operation agreement we have made a big step towards achieving this goal.”
The agreement also provides for the establishment of the AUB-FIFA Broadcast Academy and an African production centre at the International Broadcast Centre, in Johannesburg, during the World Cup event. This will ensure customised coverage for African viewers of the World Cup.
Under the terms of the agreement, broadcasters have to meet all the commercial and technical requirements in the framework of FIFA's Win in Africa with Africa initiative, to be eligible for the rights.
Lawrence Atiase, CEO of the AUB, says: ”The deal accords with the goals of our union for sustainability and will facilitate the achievement of one of the goals we adopted as legacies for Africa from the World Cup in South Africa, namely capacity development of broadcasting in Africa.”
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