2026 Audiovisual Rights Tender: A historic turning point for Uruguayan football

December 8, 2025, will be marked as one of the most important days in the recent history of Uruguayan football. The Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) provisionally awarded the audiovisual rights for the 2026-2029 cycle for a record gross amount of 67,547,000 dollars for the first year, with the possibility of significant increases in the following years thanks to exclusivity variables and infrastructure-related bonuses.

This result multiplies by more than five times the annual revenue that Uruguayan football received up to 2025 (between 12 and 18 million dollars) and consolidates the largest economic leap ever recorded in the sky blue king of sports.

 Main structural benefits

1. Historic net revenue.

   After deducting estimated production costs (6-7 million annually), Uruguayan football will have approximately 60 million dollars net per season, which is equivalent to about 240 million dollars over the base four-year period.  

This amount exceeds the previous contract's revenue by more than 400% and places Uruguayan football, for the first time, in a revenue bracket comparable to leagues with greater relative development in South America.

Diversification of operators and the end of the monopoly

   The seven lots were awarded to six different companies:  
   - DirecTV + Torneos (national cable): 31.8 million USD  
   - Disney + Antel (national and international streaming)  
   - Tenfield (static advertising and merchandising): 8 million USD  
   - Mediapro, Telecom, and Team Click (remaining lots)  

   This fragmentation breaks with 30 years of concentration in a single company and creates real competition in broadcast quality, technological innovation, and consumer experience.

Recovery of signal control by AUF

For the first time since 1997, AUF once again becomes the sole owner of the institutional signal. This allows it to directly negotiate production improvements, implement its own VAR, and market additional content (summaries, behind the scenes, e-sports) without intermediaries.

More equitable redistribution to clubs

The 16 First Division clubs will receive, on average, between 2.5 and 4 times more money than in the previous cycle.  
   Estimated example 2026 (approximate net):  
   - Large clubs: 3.8 – 5.2 million USD annually  
   - Medium clubs: 1.8 – 2.6 million USD  
   - Small clubs: 0.9 – 1.4 million USD  

   In addition, amateur football, women's football, and youth divisions will receive specific allocations guaranteed by the terms.

Incentives for infrastructure

The terms include an annual bonus of up to 3% additional (approximately 1.8 million USD) for clubs that meet minimum standards for turf, LED lighting, seating, and security.

This mechanism seeks to accelerate the modernization of stadiums, an essential condition for competing in international tournaments and attracting greater sponsorships.

Streaming boom and mass access

The awarding of national streaming to Disney + Antel ensures that matches will be available on OTT platforms at prices likely lower than traditional cable packages, expanding the reach to new generations and to audiences both inside and outside the country.

Projected sporting and economic impact

Greater capacity to retain and repatriate talent: More competitive contracts will allow Nacional and Peñarol (and eventually other clubs) to offer salaries that reduce the gap with Brazil and Mexico.

Financial sustainability: Clubs will be able to reduce historic debts, professionalize structures, and comply with the future financial fair play that AUF plans to implement.
-Improvement of the National Team: Greater resources for logistics, preparation, and extended training camps for the Celeste.

Multiplier effect: Each additional dollar in audiovisual rights generates, according to Conmebol studies, between 2.5 and 3.5 dollars in indirect economic impact (tourism, sponsorship, merchandising).

The 2026-2029 tender is not just a new television contract: it is the largest economic reform in Uruguayan football since professionalization in 1932. For the first time in decades, revenue ceases to be a structural limitation and becomes a real lever for sporting development.

The challenge now is administrative: to make distribution transparent, audit every dollar, and execute the promised infrastructure plans. If managed responsibly, Uruguayan football has before it the historic opportunity to close the gap with the most developed South American leagues and once again become a sustained continental protagonist over time.

December 8, 2025, did not mark the end of a tender; it marked the beginning of a new era.