Hello,
During the ceremony to launch RTS's coverage of the Africa Cup of Nations, which took place a few days ago, you announced that you had acquired the rights to the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, which will be held in Morocco.
Indeed, RTS has acquired exclusive rights to broadcast the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in SENEGAL in FTA mode.
RTS has chosen to place sport at the heart of its strategic focus. This decision is based on a firm belief that sport, and football in particular, is now one of the main drivers of social cohesion, a source of inspiration for young people and a means of promoting international influence.
We have therefore signed a strategic partnership in Lomé with NEWWORLD TV, the official rights holder for the competition.
How will you cover this major event?
As the sole broadcaster, RTS will spare no effort to offer Senegalese viewers matches with the quality, proximity, and rigor that characterize our national channel, enabling every citizen to fully enjoy the CAN experience.
We will be rolling out an ambitious program with fan zones in Dakar and other regions, teams sent to Morocco, cultural events, meetings with our former international players and iconic figures of Senegalese soccer, special broadcasts, analyses, documentaries, remote studios with our teams, and digital innovations to offer an interactive, immersive, and connected experience.
The goal is clear: every city, every village, every household must be able to feel part of this great celebration of African soccer.
The CAN is not just a spectacle: it is also a place of communion, a moment when differences fade away to make way for unity, emotion, and national pride.
You are one of the signatories of the letter sent to CAF demanding that all 52 matches in the competition be broadcast. What is the status of this initiative? Has CAF responded? Has New World changed its packages?
We are still demanding that all matches be broadcast, i.e., 52 matches instead of the 32 included in our agreement with NEWWORLD. But for the moment, CAF has not responded. We had a meeting in Lomé on this subject and are awaiting further developments.
Broadcasting 52 games compared to broadcasting 32 games requires more resources, as the 20 additional games represent 40 hours of additional airtime. Have you allocated additional funding for this?
You know, RTS is a big machine. We're used to managing major competitions. We have the expertise and human resources needed to get the job done.
As you know, we have two television channels, RTS1 and RTS2. We also have the ability to manage the broadcast of all matches, including those played at the same time.
With 15 days to go before the competition begins, what is the situation in terms of partnerships with advertisers?
We started working on the Africa Cup of Nations five or six months ago with a dedicated Team CAN, and we are still working on the final details. As for partners, we have already formalized partnerships with 1XBET, Le Groupe KIRÈNE, SENEGUINDA, and many others.
We also have partners who have their own commercial logic and are waiting for the national team to qualify after the first round before committing.
But for me, the most important thing is to have the rights so that everyone in Senegal can enjoy the competition to the fullest and support our team in its quest to win the African championship title once again. We have the rights, and we are continuing our long-standing efforts to sponsor the event.
How will you measure the success of the competition on your channels?
The Senegalese population loves soccer. Senegalese people watch all the games.
Senegalese people naturally support the Senegalese national team, but there are also large African communities in Senegal who support other teams. The Africa Cup of Nations is an event that concerns all Africans and will logically be a huge success.
One last question: after the Africa Cup of Nations, Senegal will be competing in the World Cup in June 2026. Will you be broadcasting that as well?
We are moving forward step by step. We will draw conclusions from the African Cup of Nations and then look ahead to the World Cup.
Basically, RTS will look into the issue of rights for the next World Cup, but not right away because the Africa Cup of Nations is our main focus at the moment.