AFC locks in exclusive media rights deal with CBS Sports

Liam Watson
The AFC has announced a multi-platform agreement with CBS Sports, making Paramount+ the exclusive home of AFC competitions in the US.
The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) has announced a multi-platform agreement with CBS Sports, making Paramount+ the exclusive home of AFC competitions in the United States of America.

Coverage will start in September and run through to 2024. Paramount+ will stream AFC’s world-class competitions exclusively, including the AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar Final Round, AFC Champions League, AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 and AFC Asian Cup China 2023.

Paramount+ will show live club and national team matches, between 2021 and 2024 – including coverage of the AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar Final Round, where Asia’s top 12 nations compete to qualify for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Additionally, Paramount+ will cover the remainder of the 2021 AFC Champions League from the Knockout Stage matches through to the Final in November. The service becomes the home of the AFC Champions League each season through to 2024.

CBS Sports Digital will deliver extra coverage and original programming, featuring highlights across social channels and CBS Sports HQ, the 24/7 streaming sports news network.

AFC General Secretary Dato’ Windsor John:

“The AFC is delighted to enter into this partnership with CBS Sports, which represents another progressive step towards increasing the visibility and consumption of the AFC’s competitions beyond our Continent.

“We look forward to working with CBS Sports in growing the fanbase of the AFC’s world-class competitions in the vibrant North American market as well as in the AFC’s territories in Guam and Northern Mariana Islands and we thank them for believing in the future of Asian football.”

CBS Sports’ coverage of the upcoming AFC Women’s Asian Cup, that serves as the qualifiers for the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia/New Zealand 2023, begins from 2022. Coverage of the AFC Asian Cup China 2023 begins in June that year. Additional broadcast details will be announced ahead of each respective competition.

Executive Vice President and General Manager, CBS Sports Digital, Jeffrey Gerttula:

“The addition of Asian Football further elevates our extensive lineup of live soccer coverage on Paramount+, highlighted by elite club competition and some of the top national teams across both the men’s and women’s international game.

“Offering matches from this expansive region provides even more value by delivering year-round soccer coverage at a time of day where the sport traditionally isn’t offered to American fans.”

Board Member and CEO at Football Marketing Asia (FMA), Patrick Murphy:

“We are thrilled to welcome CBS Sports to the family of AFC media partners. This partnership marks another important step on our mission to bring Asian football to ever bigger global audiences; hence we are proud to see the AFC’s national team and club competitions soon being available across the U.S. and Canada.

“We are looking forward to working with CBS Sports to provide an exciting experience for its viewers, and to continue to grow the audience of Asian football fans in North America.”

The agreement includes rights in Canada and Bermuda, as well as certain overseas US territories, such as the AFC Member Associations, Guam and Northern Mariana Islands.

Paramount+ is a leading destination for U.S. football fans, now featuring more than 1,600 live matches each year with the addition of AFC competitions.

The extensive portfolio of football properties now includes UEFA club competitions; NWSL; Concacaf national team competitions (Men’s World Cup Qualifiers, Women’s World Cup Qualifiers, Men’s Nations League, and Women’s Nations League); Italy’s Serie A; Argentina’s Liga Profesional de Fútbol; Brazil’s Campeonato Brasileirão Série A; and AFC competitions (AFC Asian Qualifiers – Road to Qatar, AFC Champions League, AFC Women’s Asian Cup and AFC Asian Cup).

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Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

The Melbourne-based anf family-owned business will join the Victory family, uniting two institutions which represent the city’s culture and identity.

A partnership with local roots

As the newest partner of Melbourne Victory, Roasting Warehouse joins forces with a vital part of the city’s sporting landscape.

The club’s Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the partnership bears so much value to both parties.

“We are excited to collaborate with Roasting Warehouse, a community-oriented destination for high-quality coffee, proud of its foundations in Melbourne,” said Carnegie via official media release.

“Football and coffee sit at the epicentre of Melbourne’s culture. The two go hand-in-hand, consistently at the centre of the conversation that stirs Melburnians, which is no different to the conversation sport and Melbourne Victory stir in the State.”

Indeed, this is a partnership which combines the identity, passions and culture of an entire city, therefore giving it the foundations required for long-term, mutual success.

Representing the best of Melbourne

Both Victory and Roasting Warehouse are hugely successful in their respective industries. They are institutions with community-oriented philosphies, who pride themselves on craft and quality.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Melbourne Victory, a club that represents the heart, passion, and ambition of Melbourne,” revealed Roasting Warehouse Head of Brand, Alexander Paraskevopoulos.

“As a Melbourne-founded, family-run business, supporting a team that means so much to the local community feels very natural for us.”

Furthermore, through their high-quality blends, Roasting Warehouse will look to prepare Victory’s players and staff for high performances on the pitch as the seasons nears completion.

But this is about far more than just fueling athletes.

This is a partnership which embodies and unites two of Melbourne’s greatest strengths and cultural markers – a connection forged from the city’s very own DNA.

 

For more information about Roasting Warehouse, click here.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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