CSM to carry Chinese AFC soccer broadcasts after LeSports stripped of its rights

The Asian Football Confederation has terminated its broadcasting contract in China with LeSports and awarded the rights to China Sports Media for the remainder of the 2017-20 commercial cycle.

The sport’s continental governing body said CSM, which already has the rights for China’s domestic league, had secured the rights for AFC-sanctioned competitions including World Cup qualifiers, the Asian Cup and the AFC Champions League.

The AFC said it “no alternative but to terminate its contract with LeTV, which had been signed in August 2015”.

“We look forward to working with CSM in the next few years as they are committed to providing the best and most comprehensive coverage of the AFC competitions for the tens of millions of Asian football fans in China,” AFC general secretary Windsor John said.

Chinese sports media company LeSports apologised to fans, saying on Weibo: “People will not be able to watch AFC competitions this year. Sorry for letting you down”.

The new deal was agreed with CSM chairman Li Yidong and means there will be uninterrupted coverage of this week’s AFC Champions League fixtures in China, including Tuesday’s match between Shanghai SIPG and Western Sydney Wanderers in group F.

LeSports was stripped of its rights to broadcast Asian Football Confederation coverage after defaulting on payments, according to people familiar with the matter.