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Apple was reportedly close to a roughly $1 billion deal for the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup in April 2024 and was also considering NBA streaming rights. Neither deal materialized. FIFA ultimately awarded the Club World Cup’s exclusive global rights to DAZN, while the NBA’s new 11-year U.S. media-rights agreement went to Disney/ESPN, NBCUniversal/Peacock, and Amazon.
The original report was about negotiations—not completed acquisitions—and the distinction matters for anyone deciding whether Apple TV is a destination for major live sports.
What Apple was reportedly trying to buy
The FIFA discussion concerned the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, not the men’s FIFA World Cup played in 2026. The expanded tournament featured 32 club teams and was held in the United States from June 14 through July 13, 2025.
In April 2024, reporting summarized by 9to5Mac said Apple was nearing a potential worldwide streaming agreement. FIFA was reportedly seeking approximately $4 billion for global rights, while Apple’s possible offer was estimated at about $1 billion—roughly one-quarter of that target.
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Those figures were reported estimates, not final contract terms. Apple had not paid $1 billion, and there was no completed Apple-FIFA announcement. Distribution questions, including whether matches would be available free to viewers in some markets, were still unresolved.
Why the Club World Cup mattered
The tournament offered Apple a concentrated month of premium live sport featuring leading clubs rather than national teams. Its U.S. location and timing ahead of the 2026 World Cup also made it a potentially valuable international showcase.
A global streaming package could have strengthened Apple’s subscription business and given the company a major soccer property without relying on a traditional broadcast network. For FIFA, one worldwide streaming partner could simplify distribution across markets.
But the arrangement carried risks for both sides:
- For Apple: the acquisition cost would have been substantial for a tournament that is not played every year, with uncertain subscriber conversion and significant localization, production, support, and distribution requirements.
- For FIFA: putting the event primarily behind a subscription service could limit reach in countries where broad or free-to-air access is commercially or politically important.
What happened to the FIFA deal?
The reported Apple agreement did not become the final rights deal. FIFA announced that DAZN received exclusive global broadcast rights to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
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The careful conclusion is that Apple pursued the rights but did not secure the tournament’s exclusive worldwide package. The available evidence does not establish a definitive reason Apple and FIFA failed to reach an agreement, so claims that Apple withdrew for a specific commercial or strategic reason should be treated cautiously.
What NBA rights was Apple considering?
The April 2024 reporting also described Apple as a possible bidder for some NBA streaming rights beginning with the 2025–26 season. “NBA rights” could have meant several different things:
- Direct-to-consumer access to local games;
- a portion of national regular-season games;
- nonexclusive digital distribution;
- a partnership with another distributor; or
- some other part of the league’s broader rights structure.
Apple was not necessarily expected to acquire the entire NBA package. The reporting presented it as one possible partner among companies including ESPN, Amazon, Google, and YouTube TV, and indicated that Apple was less likely to win the traditional national packages.
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What happened to the NBA rights?
On July 24, 2024, the NBA announced an 11-year media-rights agreement covering the 2025–26 through 2035–36 seasons.
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- Disney/ESPN retained a major package.
- NBCUniversal received games distributed through NBC and Peacock.
- Amazon received a major streaming package, including 66 regular-season games and additional tournament and postseason-related rights.
Apple was not included in the announced U.S. arrangement. Therefore, readers should not expect the NBA’s primary national packages to appear on Apple TV as a result of the 2024 report.
How this fits Apple’s sports strategy
Apple’s interest in FIFA and the NBA was consistent with its existing relationship with Major League Soccer. In 2024, MLS Season Pass was a separate offering priced at $14.99 per month or $99 per season, according to the original coverage.
That model later changed. Apple says the standalone MLS Season Pass ended after the 2025 season, with MLS programming moving into the standard Apple TV subscription beginning in 2026. Apple’s current sports portfolio also includes MLS, Formula 1 in the United States, Friday Night Baseball, and other programming that varies by territory and subscription availability.
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Apple’s July 2026 announcement listed a U.S. Apple TV price of $12.99 per month, although viewers should confirm the price and availability in their own country. The Apple Support page and official MLS viewing page provide the current product details.
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What this means for sports viewers
| What you want to watch | Relevant service or rights holder |
|---|---|
| MLS and Apple’s current sports catalog | Apple TV, subject to country and subscription availability |
| The 2025 FIFA Club World Cup | DAZN’s global rights agreement, subject to local availability and terms |
| NBA games in the Amazon package | Prime Video |
| NBA games in the NBCUniversal package | NBC and Peacock |
| NBA games in the Disney package | ESPN and related eligible access plans |
No single subscription necessarily covers all of these sports. Rights are territorial, and local blackouts, language feeds, authentication requirements, sublicensing, and country-specific availability can change the practical viewing options.
Also note the terminology: Apple TV refers to Apple’s current streaming subscription and app ecosystem; the Apple TV app can be available on a device even when a particular sports package is unavailable in that country. An Apple TV subscription is separate from Apple TV hardware.
Was Apple becoming a major sports broadcaster?
The 2024 reports showed that Apple was willing to explore high-profile sports rights, but they did not prove that Apple intended to become the home of every major league. The company appears capable of using sports to support a global subscription product, while remaining selective about the cost, frequency, reach, and strategic value of each property.
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The outcomes reinforce that distinction. Apple did not win the Club World Cup or a place in the NBA’s new U.S. media-rights structure, yet it continues to invest in selected sports properties. Bidding for major rights is not the same as winning them, and winning rights would not automatically demonstrate profitable subscriber growth or a positive return on investment.
The answer in one sentence
Apple was reportedly close to a roughly $1 billion FIFA Club World Cup proposal and remained a possible NBA streaming partner in April 2024, but DAZN won the FIFA tournament rights and Disney/ESPN, NBCUniversal, and Amazon won the NBA’s long-term U.S. packages.
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