The Confederation of African Football (CAF) and BeIN Sports are locked in a legal battle over the termination of their $415 million broadcast deal.
BeIN Sports claims that CAF has violated the rules in their contract by not compensating them for postponing and cancelling tournaments. The company is demanding that CAF pay them $80 million in damages.
CAF has denied the allegations, saying that they terminated the contract because of BeIN Sports’ own breaches of contract.
The legal battle is likely to drag on for months or even years. In the meantime, it is unclear how CAF will broadcast its upcoming tournaments, including the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in the region.
In a statement, BeIN Sports Group chief executive Yousef Al-Obaidly said: “We must make clear to you that beIN does not accept this termination and will take all necessary legal steps to challenge and overturn it.We believe that CAF has violated the rules in our contract by not compensating us for postponing and cancelling tournaments, and we are demanding that they pay us $80 million in damages.
“We are confident that we will be successful in this legal battle, and we will continue to fight for our rights.”
CAF has not yet responded to BeIN Sports’ statement.The legal battle between CAF and BeIN Sports is a major setback for African football. It is unclear how CAF will move forward and how it will secure a new broadcast partner.
The termination of the broadcast deal is also a major blow to BeIN Sports, which had been the exclusive broadcaster of CAF competitions since 2016. The company has invested heavily in African football, and the loss of the CAF contract is a major financial hit.The legal battle is likely to have a significant impact on the future of African football.
It remains to be seen how CAF and BeIN Sports will resolve their dispute, and what the implications will be for the sport.
