Streaming platforms crashed worldwide on World Cup opening night

Vix Premium, Zee5, and SABC+ all suffered outages during Thursday's opening ceremony and Mexico's 2-0 win over South Africa.businesstoday+2
Zee5 faced additional backlash in India after quietly cutting its advertised three-screen access to one device, drawing accusations of false advertising before reversing course.instagram+1
SABC+ acknowledged the crash on social media, saying technicians were "working around the clock" to restore service for South African viewers.thesouthafrican

The 2026 FIFA World Cup opened on Thursday in Mexico City with co-hosts Mexico defeating South Africa 2-0, but for millions of fans across at least three continents, the experience was defined not by the football but by the inability to watch it. Streaming platforms in Mexico, India, and South Africa all buckled under demand, locking out paying subscribers and free-to-air viewers alike during the tournament's opening ceremony and first match.

Vix Collapses in Mexico

In Mexico, TelevisaUnivision's Vix Premium — the only platform carrying all 104 World Cup matches in the country — began failing minutes before the opening ceremony at Estadio Azteca. Users attempting to log in were met with error messages, while those already connected could continue watching. Reports flooded DownDetector and social media as subscribers who had purchased Vix's World Cup Pass demanded refunds. The platform had launched a partnership with YouTube Alphabet Inc. Primetime Channels just days earlier in anticipation of the tournament.youtube+2

Zee5 Draws Backlash in India

In India, Zee5 — owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises and the exclusive World Cup broadcaster — suffered what fans described as an unwatchable stream as millions stayed up past midnight for the opening match. Complaints included freezing video, app crashes, login failures, server outages around kick-off, and the absence of a promised 4K option. Compounding the technical failures was a controversy over device access: Zee5 had quietly reduced its advertised three-screen simultaneous streaming to a single device for its Rs 799 World Cup package, drawing accusations of false advertising. The platform eventually restored three-device access but only after widespread backlash. The outages came despite Zee Entertainment having publicly touted infrastructure upgrades days earlier, claiming the platform had been "scaled to support millions of concurrent users".businesstoday+3

SABC Plus Fails South African Fans

South Africa's public broadcaster SABC had secured free-to-air rights to the tournament through a sub-license deal, promising coverage on SABC 3 and its SABC Plus streaming platform. But SABC Plus crashed moments before kick-off, with users reporting login failures, authentication errors, and an inability to access the stream. The platform acknowledged the outage on social media, stating that "technical teams are actively investigating the issue and working around the clock to restore full service". For South African fans watching Bafana Bafana's first World Cup appearance in 16 years, the timing was particularly painful — though the on-field result, a 2-0 loss featuring two red cards for South Africa, offered little consolation for those who eventually gained access.thesouthafrican+4

Sources (30)