SABC to broadcast 16 Rugby World Cup games, per MultiChoice deal

South Africa’s pay TV platform MultiChoice and the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) have reached an agreement for the free-to-air rights rights of the Rugby World Cup 2023, with the SABC to air all the South African team’s games.

MultiChoice has exclusive rights to broadcast all the Rugby World Cup games live in the country. The SABC will broadcast all of the 16 Springbok games on its channels, however the deal excludes coverage on the OpenView HD platform.

The broadcaster described these conditions as “restrictive” which will cut off approximately 3.2 million South African households access to the tournament.

In an official statement the company said, “The SABC regrets this irrational decision by MultiChoice, especially in light of Minister Zizi Kodwa’s emphasis that “rugby plays a critical role in nation building and social cohesion”. The SABC hopes that in the interest of nation building and social cohesion, MultiChoice will remove this restrictive condition to enable all South Africans to get behind the Boks.

“The SABC would like to thank its broadcast partners, Hollywoodbets and South African Breweries with the Castle Lager Brand who enabled the public broadcaster to secure these important rights.”