Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Saturday, Aug 02, 2025

FIFA World Cup Streaming Blocked In Saudi Arabia: Report

FIFA World Cup Streaming Blocked In Saudi Arabia: Report

The platform, Tod TV, is owned by the Qatari broadcaster beIN Media Group, which was banned in Saudi Arabia for several years during a row between the two countries but was restored in October 2021.
The official streaming platform of the World Cup appears to have been blocked without explanation in Saudi Arabia, subscribers told AFP on Saturday.

The platform, Tod TV, is owned by the Qatari broadcaster beIN Media Group, which was banned in Saudi Arabia for several years during a row between the two countries but was restored in October 2021.

"Due to matters beyond our control, we are experiencing an outage in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which is currently impacting TOD.tv, the official streaming partner of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022. Additional information will be provided as soon as it is available," beIN said in a message sent to partners and subscribers.

The Saudi government did not respond to a request for comment about the disruption, while beIN declined to comment.

Tod TV is the official World Cup streaming service in 24 countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

Several subscribers in Saudi Arabia told AFP on Saturday they had been unable to access the service since the World Cup began on November 20.

One said the service cut out fully about an hour before the broadcast of the opening ceremony.

Another said the service still works briefly but for no more than 10 minutes before an error message appears.

"Sorry, the requested page is violating the regulations of Ministry of Media," the error message says.

"I want my money," one subscriber told AFP, saying efforts to get a refund on the service, which costs about 300 Saudi riyals (roughly $80) per month, had been unsuccessful.

beIN is broadcasting 22 World Cup matches for free in Saudi Arabia, including those of the Saudi Green Falcons, who stunned the world on Tuesday with their 2-1 defeat of Argentina and were set to face Poland on Saturday afternoon.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia's 37-year-old de facto ruler, orchestrated a regional boycott of Qatar beginning in June 2017, the same month he became first in line to the throne.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt cut ties with Doha over allegations it supported extremists and was too close to arch-rival Iran -- allegations Doha denied.

During the boycott, beIN Media Group was banned in Saudi Arabia.

But Riyadh announced last October it was lifting the ban, smoothing the way for the takeover of England's Newcastle United football club by a Saudi-backed consortium.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
AI Raises Alarms Over Long-Term Job Security
Saudi Arabia Maintains Ties with Iran Despite Israel Conflict
Russia Formally Recognizes Taliban Government in Afghanistan
Mediators Edge Closer to Israel-Hamas Ceasefire Agreement
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
Amazon Reaches Major Automation Milestone with Over One Million Robots
Meta Announces Formation of Ambitious AI Unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Iran Executes Alleged Israeli Spies and Arrests Hundreds Amid Post-War Crackdown
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
Iran's Parliament Votes to Suspend Cooperation with Nuclear Watchdog
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
NATO Leaders Endorse Plan for Increased Defence Spending
U.S. Crude Oil Prices Drop Below $65 Amid Market Volatility
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Oman Set to Introduce Personal Income Tax, First in Gulf
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Iran Intensifies Crackdown on Alleged Mossad Operatives After Sabotage Claims
Trump Praises Iran’s ‘Very Weak’ Response After U.S. Strikes and Presses Israel to Pursue Peace
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
We have new information and breaking details to share about what is shaping up to be a historic air campaign tonight
Six Massive Bombs Dropped on Fordow; Trump: 'A Historic Moment for the U.S., Israel, and the World'
Fordow: Deeply Buried Iranian Enrichment Site in U.S.–Israel Crosshairs
United States Conducts Precision Strikes on Iran’s Nuclear Sites
US strikes Iran nuclear sites, Trump says
Pakistan to nominate Trump for Nobel Peace Prize.
Israel Confirms Assassination of Quds Force Commander in Tehran
16 Billion Login Credentials Leaked in Unprecedented Cybersecurity Breach
Senate hearing on who was 'really running' Biden White House kicks off
×