FIFA President Gianni Infantino thanked Zee TV for promoting football in India and helping make the sport a year-round experience through coverage of multiple FIFA tournaments and community screenings.
Published: July 18, 2026, 9:11 PM IST
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino attending FIFA World Cup 2026 matches. (Photo: IANS)
FIFA World Cup 2026 final: Ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 final, FIFA President Gianni Infantino praised Zee TV for its continued efforts to promote football across India, highlighting the broadcaster’s role in expanding the sport’s reach through extensive coverage of FIFA tournaments. In an applauding message, Infantino said, “On the eve of the FIFA World Cup final between Spain and Argentina, I want to thank you, my friends at Zee TV, for everything you have done to promote football in India. I am very proud of our partnership which encompasses 39 FIFA competitions, including the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2027, FIFA youth World Cups, futsal tournaments and the FIFA Intercontinental Cup. This ensures that football can now be presented as a continuous narrative in India, not just as something that happens every four years.”
“We know that India is a passionate football country and that the Indian market enjoys huge potential – something I witnessed for myself when I visited the country for the FIFA Under-17 World Cup in 2017, with a record-breaking attendance of over 1.3 million fans, and the FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup five years later. I also visited India in 2020 for an IOC meeting and have been honoured to meet India’s most capped and highestscoring international, former captain Sunil Chhetri,” he stated.
An honour to receive these words from FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
Together, we’ve worked to make football more accessible, more inclusive, and closer to millions of fans across India. From broadcast screens to community screenings, every match has been about bringing people… pic.twitter.com/0MzJ973qWT
— India.com (@indiacom) July 18, 2026
Furthermore, he added, “And your beautiful country has been very much present at the FIFA World Cup 2026, with players of Indian heritage representing other national teams including New Zealand, Australia, Qatar and the Democratic Republic of Congo. And there have been thousands of Indian supporters among the 6.5 million fans to have attended matches across the 16 Host Cities, many of them adopting other teams such as Argentina, Brazil, Portugal or England.”
Praising Zee TV for its continued efforts, FIFA President Gianni Infantino said,”I am delighted that Zee TV has attempted to take the tournament beyond private television viewing. By allowing authorised screenings in venues such as cinemas, pubs, restaurants, airports and hotels, you have helped to create communal match-night experiences across the country. This is a wonderful initiative and does immense good for our game. I thank you once again for everything you have done to boost our sport in India and, of course, I look forward to the day when we can welcome India to the FIFA World Cup. “
