Can FIFA+ Become A Game Changer?

FIFA has taken the plunge.

Soccer’s global governing body has founded its own streaming platform, FIFA+. With the launch, Zurich transitions from a seller of media rights to a broadcast operator in its own right, albeit small and prudently. The beginnings may be humble but FIFA+ has the potential to be one of those disruptive game changers that come along once a generation.

The platform will initially be free to use and will use advertising revenue to try and achieve its target of breaking even in one year. More than 40,000 matches will be live-streamed in the first year alone. Viewers can also access the vast archival material that FIFA owns, including every World Cup game ever recorded on tape – more than 2000 hours of content. The platform will also feature original documentaries featuring some of the game’s brightest stars.

There is no question that FIFA+ will benefit soccer. As FIFA president Gianni Infantino claimed in his statement marking the platform’s launch, the platform does indeed have the potential to democratize the game. Soccer may be a lucrative business to officials, broadcasters and sponsors alike in prime European markets, but there are countries where the local leagues struggle for visibility. Member associations will benefit from the revenue of live matches, a model that will bolster soccer’s entire ecosystem. FIFA+ could aid the development of such leagues by taking these games to the fans. It could also provide a boost for women’s soccer – 11,000 of the 40,000 games that FIFA+ plans to broadcast in the first year will be contested by women.

Fifa’s director of strategy and commercial development Charlotte Burr has already signalled that in the long-term paid content could be introduced on FIFA+. At the heart of the platform’s launch lies a broader question: is the world federation envisaging a Netflix of its own? Is the platform to become a premier destination for soccer content?

Industry experts have long predicted that sports broadcasting and the way soccer fans will consume live events will shift from TV to streaming platforms. Perhaps, it was only a matter of time before FIFA launched its own streaming service, considering how maximizing revenues has always been a major priority of the organization. With the launch of FIFA+, the custodians of the world’s most popular sport are now primed to make even more money out of it.

Streaming services are already big business, but there is a lot of room for growth. A study conducted by Verified Market Research in 2021 estimated that the business of streaming live sports would grow from $18.1 billion in 2020 to $87.3 billion by 2028.

The number one sport globally, it stands to reason that soccer will account for the biggest chunk of this pie. The game has already started generating quite a bit of revenue from streaming partners. La Liga recently struck a deal with Amazon to broadcast games on their Prime Video streaming service, while the Premier League counts as its official rights holder in Spain and Canada, the mobile app DAZN. FIFA+ could become a direct rival to these early entrants. Of course, in the short term, FIFA+ won’t compete with major broadcasters and tech platforms. It won’t be home to premium media rights either. The platform is about more modest products.

The long-term might be different. FIFA+ could help FIFA hegemonize soccer streaming, potentially directing billions in revenues from a burgeoning market into the organization’s kitty. In 2018, FIFA estimated that a combined 1.2 billion people had seen the World Cup final on TV or on streaming platforms. Given the rate at which mobile phones and tablets are replacing televisions as the world’s preferred way of catching up with live sport, the potential is enormous.

All this though represents a best-case scenario for FIFA. The initial offering on FIFA+ is unlikely to have sponsors queueing up to advertise. Revenue will be limited. FIFA will also have to work out how such a platform can coexist with its existing sources of television revenue – currently its main source of income – and how those broadcasters might react to FIFA+. There will be a number of hurdles to overcome but if FIFA plays its cards right, it could prove a smart move. The sports industry will be watching closely.