With about 70 days left until the 2026 North America World Cup, South Korea’s three terrestrial broadcasters and JTBC held talks over broadcast rights but failed to narrow their differences.
The meeting on March 30 was chaired by Kim Jong-cheol, chairman of the Broadcasting Media Communications Commission, and attended by KBS President Park Jang-beom, MBC President Ahn Hyeong-jun, SBS President Bang Moon-shin and JTBC President Jeon Jin-bae. The two sides did not reach an agreement.
JTBC said it had presented a final proposal on March 23, suggesting that the remaining rights fee — after subtracting revenue from digital resales — be split evenly between JungAng Group, which includes JTBC, and the three broadcasters.
JTBC added that the three broadcasters’ “Korea Pool” has previously shared international sports rights costs at the same ratio, and said its proposal was a last offer made despite the prospect of “a large deficit,” citing concerns about universal viewing rights.
A terrestrial broadcaster official who attended the March 30 meeting said there was “no progress” in negotiations for the 2026 World Cup rights. The official said the three broadcasters’ CEOs are demanding a “responsible position statement” from JTBC, which they say triggered the dispute.
JTBC secured exclusive rights to the 2026-2032 Summer and Winter Olympics and the 2025-2030 World Cups in 2019, the report said, bypassing the Korea Pool consortium of MBC, KBS and SBS. It later sought to resell the rights to the three broadcasters, but the effort fell through.
As a result, JTBC exclusively aired the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, but drew low ratings due to limited channels, fueling controversy over whether it infringed on the public’s universal right to watch major events.
To protect that right, Democratic Party lawmaker Han Jeong-ae introduced an amendment to the Broadcasting Act on March 16 to guarantee universal viewing rights for events including the Olympics and the World Cup.
The commission has also tried to mediate as negotiations have repeatedly stalled, including by holding an open public forum under the theme, “2026 North America World Cup broadcasts, listening to the public,” but has struggled to break the deadlock.
While the March 30 meeting failed to bridge the gap, the terrestrial broadcaster official said working-level talks would continue, leaving open the possibility of a final deal.