FIFA launches ad-funded live football streaming service FIFA+

FIFA has launched FIFA+, an ad-funded streaming service that will show live games, feature-length documentaries and archive content.

Available from today, the OTT platform will air 40,000 live matches every year from 100 Member Associations across all six confederations, including 11,000 women’s matches.

FIFA said the services would provide live coverage from Europe’s top leagues to previously unserved competitions from around the world in men’s, women’s and youth football.  From launch, 1,400 matches will be live streamed monthly on FIFA+.

The free-to-access streaming service will be available across web and mobile devices, with FIFA stating that it will “soon” provide access via connected devices. It will be available in English, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish, with an additional six languages to follow in June.

“FIFA+ represents the next step in our vision to make football truly global and inclusive, and it underpins FIFA’s core mission of expanding and developing football globally,” said FIFA President Gianni Infantino.

“This project represents a cultural shift in the way different types of football fans want to connect with and explore the global game and has been a fundamental part of my Vision 2020-2023. It will accelerate the democratisation of football and we are delighted to share it with fans.”

FIFA+ will also host full-length documentaries, docuseries, talk shows and shorts localised into 11 languages.

Some of the documentaries include 90-minute programme ‘Ronaldinho: The Happiest Man in the World’, a Fullwell 73-produced series ‘Captains: Season 1’ which follows six captains as they lead their countries through qualification for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and ‘HD Cutz’, and a four-part series ‘Golden Boot’ featuring interviews with the greatest World Cup scorers, produced by Goalhanger Films.

Ahead of Qatar 2022, FIFA+ will be home to every World Cup and Women’s World Cup match ever recorded, totalling more than 2,000 hours of archive content. FIFA said it is the first time this archive will be made available to fans, with some 2,500 videos dating back to the 1950s.

FIFA+ will also host ‘The Match Centre’, which will allow fans to immerse themselves data across 400 men’s competitions and 65 women’s competitions. It will also provide a daily feed of news from around the world of men’s and women’s football.