The Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) has assured football enthusiasts across the nation that it will broadcast all 52 matches of the upcoming African Cup of Nations (AFCON) live.
In a recent announcement posted on X, the federal government-owned television station revealed that it has entered into a memorandum of understanding with Afro Sports TV, a pan-African Free-To-Air (FTA) sports channel.
The statement on X read, “NTA signs a memorandum of understanding with Afro Sports TV for the transmission of 52 games of the African Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire.”
This development follows a period of uncertainty regarding the broadcasting rights for the AFCON, as MultiChoice, the parent company of DStv and GOtv, announced its failure to secure the rights to broadcast the tournament in Ivory Coast.
MultiChoice’s SuperSport channel, a popular sports broadcaster, confirmed that it would not be airing the competition set to commence on January 13.
It later came to light that New World TV, a Togolese audio-visual group, had successfully secured the broadcasting rights for all 13 competitions organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in sub-Saharan Africa for the next two years, including the AFCON 2023 and the subsequent edition.
Concerns were raised about the potential language barriers given New World TV’s stronghold in French-speaking African countries.
The 34th edition of AFCON is scheduled to take place in Ivory Coast from January 13 to February 11, featuring the Super Eagles of Nigeria in Group A alongside Ivory Coast, Equatorial Guinea, and Guinea-Bissau.
Nigeria will kick off its campaign against Equatorial Guinea on January 14, followed by clashes with Ivory Coast and Guinea-Bissau in the group stage.
