Ahead of broadcasting its first FIFA World Cup in 2018, FOX Sports has acquired the television rights to 25 Mexican national team games over the next three years. The marquee matchup of the deal – comprised of home friendlies and World Cup Qualifiers – is a likely-to-be Hexagonal match versus the United States national team in 2017 at the Azteca Stadium. For some history, the two most-watched USMNT matches on Fox Sports 1 — excluding the Gold Cup — have been against Mexico.
The Mexican national team has been a big TV draw with American audiences. Their 2014 World Cup Group Stage matches averaged 3.1 million viewers on ESPN, with the Round of 16 matchup versus the Netherlands generating 5.7 million viewers.
The deal gives Fox Sports the rights to carry El Tri matches in three upcoming major global tournaments. Fox has the TV rights to the 2016 Copa America Centenario, the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup, and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
Additionally, FOX has signed Emmy Award winning broadcaster Fernando Fiore to be a part of its broadcasting team. This marks his first foray into English broadcasting, having worked exclusively on Spanish-language television prior.
Categories: Fox, Mexican National Team, TV Rights