FIFA and Qatar added more World Cup complaints to their growing list of criticisms over the first two days of the tournament. 

FIFA’s official app crashed on Monday — one day after the World Cup began — leaving thousands of fans unable to access their tickets. According to ESPN, some tickets “disappeared” from the app, others couldn’t be transferred to other attendees, and some users couldn’t log in to the app at all. 

Stranded fans were instructed to go to the Doha Exhibition & Convention Center. At one point, there were reportedly 500 people seen outside the building. 

• England’s 6-2 victory over Iran began at 4 p.m. local time, while hundreds of attendees were reportedly still working to gain access.
• Ahead of Monday’s 1-1 tie between the U.S. and Wales at 10 p.m.local time, some supporters were told to get a printed ticket from the Convention Center.

At Ecuador’s 2-0 victory against Qatar on Sunday – the first time a host nation lost the opening game – attendance was scarce, and fans who were there chanted, “We want beer!” Budweiser has a $75 million deal with FIFA, who revealed last week no beer would be available at the stadiums.

Fan Zone Issues

On Sunday, tens of thousands of fans pushed and shoved as they tried to enter a fan zone in central Doha, where they were met with riot police armed with batons and shields. 

“It’s very risky,” Hatem El-Berarri, an Iraqi working in neighboring Dubai, told the Associated Press. “People they [sic] could die.”

Disney’s shocking Sunday night move has sparked optimism among investors.

The company’s stock price jumped around 6.3% on Monday following the announcement that CEO Bob Chapek had been ousted and replaced by the company’s longtime chief executive Bob Iger.

Under Chapek, who took over from Iger in February 2020, Disney bought high-value sports rights to bolster ESPN+ and ESPN’s linear channels.

• In March 2021, Disney secured rights to 23 regular-season NFL games, “Monday Night Football,” one exclusive game per year on ESPN+, and a place in the Super Bowl rotation in a 10-year deal reportedly worth $2.7 billion per year.
• That same month, it reached a seven-year deal worth around $400 million annually for a top-tier package of NHL games. The company has booked around $90 million in ad sales for the current NHL season.
• Disney’s networks will continue to broadcast Formula 1 with a three-year deal worth a reported $225 million — a 17-fold increase over its previous deal.

Streaming Questions

Chapek set a lofty goal of reaching up to 260 million streaming subscribers by September 2024. That plan hit some turbulence when Disney failed to renew streaming rights to the Indian Premier League — more than a third of Disney+ subscribers live in India.

Iger will have to decide how aggressively to pursue two major sports rights packages: NFL Sunday Ticket and the NBA, the latter of which it currently shares with TNT of Discovery Warner Bros.

The NBA may seek a deal worth triple its current nine-year pact which pays $2.6 billion annually.

The richest sports team owner in America is no longer considering a bid for an iconic European soccer club. 

Steve Ballmer — the owner of the Los Angeles Clippers — had been rumored to make a takeover bid for the Premier League’s Liverpool FC. 

“When I sat down with Ballmer recently and asked if he would be interested in buying any other sports franchises, he said no,” Los Angeles Times reporter Sam Farmer said. 

The former Microsoft CEO — whose net worth is $79 billion, per Forbes — emerged as a potential suitor due to the club’s potential asking price by owner Fenway Sports Group. 

• FSG also owns the Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Penguins.
• The sports investment company purchased Liverpool in 2010 for $353.4 million.
• The club has hired Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to facilitate a potential sale.
• Liverpool is valued at $4.45 billion — the fourth-most-valuable club in soccer. 

Liverpool has received solidified interest from Mukesh Ambani, owner of the Indian Premier League’s Mumbai Indians. Ambani could handle the steep price tag with a net worth of $90.9 billion, making the energy entrepreneur the richest sports team owner in the world. 

American Owner Still Possible 

Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment is mulling its options on a potential bid for Liverpool.

HBSE owns a minority stake — roughly 18% — in fellow Premier League club Crystal Palace FC. The sports company would have to divest its stake to complete a deal for Liverpool.