• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, 8 hours ago

Just like other sports TV programmers, the FIFA World Cup has TV/streaming companies looking to the next round of media rights deals. 

And that means a sharp increase -- with industry estimates suggesting U.S.-based companies could pay anywhere from $1.5 billion to $2 billion. Netflix, YouTube, Walt Disney (Disney+, Hulu, ABC Television Network, ESPN)  -- as well as existing media partners Fox Corp. and NBCUniversal's Telemundo -- could be contenders for those upcoming FIFA World Cup contracts.

The 2030 World Cup will be set in a similar three-country situation as the one now taking place -- played in venues in Spain, Portugal and Morocco.

Boosting interest in this year’s World’s Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico is the rapid rise in U.S. viewership -- nearly doubling viewership totals from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Fox's viewership has soared 92% to 5.1 million and Telemundo has seen a 122% gain to 4.6 million through the group stage. This comes as recent, later-round games rose to 20 million to 30 million viewers for some matches for each media platform.

This sharp viewership gain comes as Fox and Telemundo have paid what analysts call a bargain basement deal.

Fox Corp. paid $485 million to air the nearly month-long event for its platforms (Fox Television Network/Tubi and others) for its English-language rights, according to estimates, while NBCUniversal’s Telemundo/Peacock paid $600 million for the Spanish-language rights.

These TV/streaming deals are helped by the “hydration breaks” -- those three-minute breaks between the 45-minute halves of nonstop action -- where traditional TV commercials can be placed.

The breaks themselves are currently estimated for Fox and Telemundo to bring around $200 million to $250 million in advertising revenue, according to reports. Each media company could see an ultimate increase to $450 million for the entire event.

While the strong, early-round initial results from the U.S. men’s national team has certainly helped to spike viewership, there is also growing interest in big brand soccer (football) countries and stars in Europe and South America.

This includes former World Cup Champion Argentina (Lionel Messi), Spain (Cristiano Ronaldo) and France (Kylian Mbappé.).

For many, the four-year World Cup cycle is similar to the cycle of the Olympics for each of its Winter and Summer games.

Is the FIFA organization now looking to rival some of what the IOC has accomplished?