5% of over 700 in CASE survey pay to watch 2026 World Cup, nearly half watch free telecasts
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Fans watching the World Cup match between South Africa and South Korea on their mobile phones on June 25, during a temporary outage of the public screening at Lau Pa Sat.
ST PHOTO: CHONG JUN LIANG
- Most respondents (45%) watch the World Cup via free-to-air channels, while only 5% pay for subscriptions, according to a CASE survey of over 700 people.
- About 40% disagree that the $118 subscription price is reasonable.
- Mediacorp increased free broadcasts to 28 matches, helping more viewers enjoy the expanded 104-game 2026 World Cup.
AI generated
SINGAPORE – The majority of over 700 respondents of a Consumers Association of Singapore (CASE) survey said they are watching the 2026 World Cup action for free, with just 5 per cent of them saying they paid for a subscription.
Announcing the findings in a Facebook post on July 8, CASE president Melvin Yong said 45 per cent of the respondents have been watching matches through free-to-air options, such as those by Mediacorp.
Another 22 per cent said they have been following the June 11 to July 19 tournament via clips online or on social media, and only 5 per cent of respondents are watching games through paid subscriptions.
About half – or 49 per cent – of the respondents indicated that they are neutral to the statement “I find the subscription price of watching the World Cup reasonable”, with a combined 40 per cent either disagreeing or strongly disagreeing with the statement.
The standard subscription price of $118 for this tournament is unchanged from the 2022 edition.
The majority of the respondents, or 39 per cent, said they are watching only match highlights, while 26 per cent said they are watching some matches. Only 6 per cent of respondents said they watch the games regularly.
Held in the United States, Canada and Mexico, the matches so far have kicked off between midnight and noon in Singapore.
Yong said the survey suggests that more people are able to enjoy the tournament without a paid subscription because more matches are being shown on free-to-air platforms, and highlights from the games are uploaded online quickly.
In February, Mediacorp announced that it will air 28 of the 104 games for free on Channel 5 and mewatch, increasing from nine in 2022. The 2026 World Cup is expanded to a record 48 teams from 32 previously, resulting in an increase in the total number of games from 64 to 104.
Other than the free broadcasts, fans can pay to access all 104 matches live and on demand via mewatch and Mediacorp’s carriage partners, Singtel and StarHub.
The $118 price tag in 2022 was a slight increase from the standard $112.35 subscription fee in 2018, which was unchanged from 2014.
In 2010, the subscription price of $94 was more than six times what was charged for the previous World Cup.
In response to ST queries, a Mediacorp spokesperson said it was “heartened by the strong response” to its coverage, and also thanked partners like the People’s Association, national agency Sport Singapore and The Kallang Group in enabling free public screenings at over 100 locations.
“We are delighted that cumulative viewership across all platforms has surpassed that of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and are confident this momentum will carry through to the final,” added the spokesperson.
CASE encourages consumers to make informed choices before signing up for any packages, said Yong, who also urged the public to compare the available packages, understand the subscription terms and conditions, and check for any automatic renewal clauses before signing up.
He added: “A few moments spent reviewing the details can help you avoid unnecessary costs later. I wish everyone an enjoyable World Cup. May the tournament continue to bring people together through the shared excitement of the beautiful game.”
