THE Confederation of African football has announced new broadcast companies for the body’s competitions in the next two years.
“CAF has appointed Infront France, AMP Visual, Globecast and Mediapro as Broadcast Services suppliers at CAF events for the period 2022-2023,” the African football governing body said in a press release on Tuesday.
“This will include the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Cameroon 2021, TotalEnergies CAF Champions League, TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup, TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations Cote d’Ivoire 2023 and other competitions.”
CAF added that for the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations which will kick off on 9 January, the new broadcast partners will work with host broadcaster, CRTV in Cameroon, in delivering wide range of services to broadcasters from around the world.
The announcement of the new partners came after a tender process that was advertised by CAF in October 2021.
The breakdown of the companies and their services shows Infront France (Broadcaster Liaison and Coordination), AMP Visual (Graphics Services), Mediapro (Host Broadcast Consultancy and Services) and Globecast (Satellite Services).
According to CAF, all the companies have a strong record in delivering services on the continent.
CAF General Secretary, Veron Mosengo-Omba said: “Quality TV production is one of the key elements in delivering world-class events. For CAF to reach the next level, it is important to ensure that we have world class skills and expertise.
“Starting in Cameroon next year, Infront France, AMP Visual, Mediapro and Globecast, working closely with CRTV who is our host broadcaster.”
Jean-François Jeanne, Managing Director at Infront France said: “Our offering to CAF and its broadcasters has a reputation of high quality and this forms the backbone of our latest agreement for the upcoming AFCON. The team we have established and the output from past events has created a new benchmark on the continent and we have high hopes to exceed those in 2022, beginning with this tournament.”
Andreas Kaeshammer, Global Head of Football at Infront said: “This agreement is another signal that Infront continues to see significant growth opportunities in Africa and the continent remains a strategic priority for us. As one of Africa’s top rightsholders we have a responsibility and commitment to provide the best service to all stakeholders and we look forward to continue working alongside CAF to deliver a superior product to football fans in Africa and beyond.”
There was controversy involved in the previous broadcasting deals signed by the former CAF hierarchy, and African viewers were unable to watch most of their national teams and clubs’ matches on local and cable television.
For instance, the recent Qatar 2022 World Cup qualifiers were not shown on Africa’s biggest cable service provider DSTV over rights issues.
It is not clear if these new deals will address the problem and games will now be available to African football fans on television.
