ESPN has been confirmed as a Copa do Brasil rights holder for the 2027-2030 cycle, joining Globo and Amazon in a domestic broadcast package worth more than R$4 billion.
The Brazilian Football Confederation confirmed the agreement with ESPN on September 21, completing a rights line-up it had first outlined earlier in the month without identifying the third broadcaster. ESPN will carry the competition across ESPN and Disney+, bringing the tournament back to the network after an absence from its recent rights portfolio.
The CBF says the total value of the new cycle is more than 80% above the current agreement and describes it as the largest media-rights commercialization in Brazilian football history.
CBF moves from exclusivity to a four-package rights model
The next cycle changes the structure through which Copa do Brasil rights reach broadcasters. Globo's current 2023-2026 agreement with the CBF was announced as an exclusive rights deal, with Prime Video subsequently carrying matches through a sublicensing arrangement. From 2027, the CBF is instead selling several packages directly to different media companies.
Package 1, covering free-to-air television, has gone to Globo. The company also holds Package 2, a multiplatform set of rights. Package 3 is another multiplatform package and will be shared by Amazon and ESPN, while Package 4 covers near-live content, reacts and highlights and is assigned to Ge TV.
UOL reported during the rights process that Packages 2 and 3 carry the same value and will alternate priority in the selection of matches from season to season. It also reported that all of the main broadcasters will have access to the Copa do Brasil final.
The exact number of ESPN matches per season was not disclosed in the CBF's confirmation. Prime Video has separately said it will show 18 matches per season from the round in which the Serie A clubs enter, including exclusive and co-exclusive games. Its package includes an exclusive semifinal in two of the four seasons. Globo says its platforms will carry up to 88 broadcasts per year across the Copa do Brasil and Supercopa Rei, with TV Globo allocated 14 dates annually.
New cycle is worth more than R$4 billion
The CBF puts the four-year domestic rights value at more than R$4 billion, an increase of more than 80% from the cycle that ends in 2026. The federation negotiated directly with media companies rather than using an intermediary and divided the inventory to allow several buyers into the market.
The higher rights value also coincides with a substantial expansion of the competition. The Copa do Brasil had 92 clubs and 122 matches before its latest restructuring. There are 126 clubs and 155 games in 2026, and the CBF says the field will increase again to 128 teams and 157 matches from 2027.
The tournament is also being spread across more of the domestic calendar. UOL reported that the CBF intends to reduce overlapping kick-off times and use more weekend slots in the later rounds, increasing the number of distinct broadcast windows available to rights holders.
CBF will produce a single host broadcast from 2027
Another major change begins with the new cycle: the CBF will take responsibility for producing the television pictures for every Copa do Brasil match and distribute a single standardized feed to its rights holders.
Until now, production has been tied more closely to the individual broadcasters. Centralizing the host broadcast gives the federation control over the visual identity and commercial inventory embedded in the feed, while also creating one production standard across the competition.
The CBF has compared the approach with the centralized production systems used by CONMEBOL, UEFA and FIFA. UOL reported that the plan is for every match to have a produced feed, including fixtures from the early rounds that traditionally attract less national television coverage.
Supercopa Rei rights run from 2028 to 2031
The commercial package also covers the Supercopa Rei from 2028 through 2031. The 2027 edition remains part of the existing agreement, under which Globo holds exclusive rights to the competition through that year.
Prime Video has confirmed that the Supercopa will be included in its offering from 2028 on a shared-rights basis, alongside its renewed Copa do Brasil coverage.
One part of the wider rights sale was still unresolved when the domestic deals were first announced. UOL reported on September 10 that the CBF planned to market a separate international package but had not yet completed that sale. The federation's September 21 announcement confirming ESPN did not provide an update on those international rights.