The battle for World Cup viewers in the UAE stepped up a notch yesterday as Etisalat launched a cut-price TV package just 24 hours before the tournament's kick-off. Football fans will be able to view three Al Jazeera sports channels and watch all FIFA World Cup matches with a one-off payment of Dh295 (US$80), Etisalat said. The telecommunications company said the packages were "aligned with the price revisions made by Al Jazeera Sports", which has the exclusive rights to broadcast the matches in the region.
Etisalat still has its original Dh370 World Cup package, which gives the customer access to more channels. Its rival, du, last week announced customers would have access to its World Cup package for Dh299. Etisalat also offers access to the games through some of its other packages for no additional fee. The games are expected to attract about 4 billion TV viewers worldwide, according to du. Hotels and other venues in Dubai and Abu Dhabi have been preparing for a busy weekend as fans are expected to flock to big screens to watch the matches. There is even a public viewing venue at the foot of the Burj Khalifa.
World Cup fever has also spread to other companies. Emirates Airline, an official FIFA "partner", is planning to outfit its departure gates with big-screen TVs showing live coverage. Onboard, passengers will be able to track their teams' progress with screenings of recent matches and live text updates of current matches. Most first-class and business-class lounges will also broadcast the matches live.
The onboard entertainment service at Emirates will feature recordings of all games from the 64-match tournament within a few hours of them taking place, as well as live goal-by-goal updates and text commentary. "This is another important way that we utilise our FIFA sponsorship to benefit our passengers and sport fans around the world," said Maurice Flanagan, the executive vice chairman of Emirates.
rbundhun@thenational.ae igale@thenational.ae
