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All Argentina men’s national soccer team matches will be broadcast domestically free-to-air (FTA) in 2023, the South American country’s government has decreed.
Confirmed:
- Games will air via the national public service broadcaster TV Publica
- Should the pay-TV network Torneos y Competencias (TyC) fail to relinquish its rights it will face a penalty
- This could include being excluded from Argentina’s list of registered list of broadcasters
- TV Publica’s coverage will start with the international friendly against Panama on 23rd March
- Argentina’s games declared events of ‘national importance’ and require universal access in 2023
Context:
Earlier this month, TyC, the domestic broadcast partner for Argentina’s international fixtures, prompted a dispute by refusing to sell the rights to the team’s upcoming matches against Panama and Curacao. Amid the subsequent furore the Argentinian government stepped in, introducing a decree signed by cabinet chief Agustin Rossi that ensures FTA access to the games for the rest of the year.
Comment:
‘During the last weeks, [Television Publica] made the necessary arrangements with the company Torneos y Competencias to acquire the transmission rights of the friendly matches of the Argentine soccer team, as happened for the Qatar 2022 World Cup,’ Rossi wrote in a Twitter post.
‘This decision guarantees the right of universal access to the contents of the matches. If the company does not comply, the penalties determined by the actions may be applied, which may go as far as its exclusion from the registry of audiovisual service provider companies.’
Coming next:
Argentina’s first two matches after winning the Qatar 2022 World Cup in December will be covered by the national decree, as will the remainder of their games this year, but how this impacts the long-term future of the national team’s domestic broadcast rights remains unclear.
