One of the world’s biggest sports events is coming to Sportsnet.
On Tuesday, Sportsnet and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation announced a broadcast partnership to televise the 2014 FIFA World Cup from Brazil.
Under the new sub-licensing agreement, Sportsnet will carry matches of the tournaments for which CBC holds Canadian broadcast rights under its current agreement with FIFA, soccer’s world governing body. Aside from the 2014 World Cup, the list of events includes the 2012 Under-20 Women’s World Cup, the 2013 Confederations Cup and the 2014 U-20 Women’s World Cup in Canada.
Also under the agreement, Sportsnet officially becomes a licensed broadcaster of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
“Sportsnet is committed to providing fans with access to premium soccer content, and providing viewers with exceptional broadcast coverage,” said Scott Moore, Rogers Media President of Broadcast. “We are thrilled to be part of bringing Canadians comprehensive coverage of the 2014 World Cup and other world-class FIFA events over the next three years.”
Sportsnet and CBC teamed up last summer to broadcast the FIFA Women’s World Cup from Germany.
“This is an exciting arrangement which will ensure that Canadians are able to enjoy all of the action of ‘the beautiful game’ at its most prestigious level,” said Jeffrey Orridge, CBC’s Executive Director of Sports Properties. “CBC is committed to sharing the best in Canadian and international sporting events with viewers across the country, and this new agreement allows for broader coverage of these marquee FIFA tournaments.”`
Starting this month, the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup from Japan will air live on CBC, including all three of Canada’s group stage matches. Sportsnet will also be broadcasting matches from the tournament, which runs from Aug. 19 to Sept. 8
Canada opens the competition against Argentina on Aug. 20, then faces Norway (Aug. 23) and North Korea (Aug. 27).