Public Television hands over the screen to private individuals and leaves millions of Argentines without the World Cup

Published at: 16/06/2026 04:22 PM

The start of the 2026 World Cup marked an unprecedented event in the history of Argentine Public Television (TVP), as it did not broadcast the opening ceremony, a situation unprecedented in the channel's more than 50 years of history. This absence, which deprives millions of households of free access to football, was previously warned by the unions and took place due to the intervention of the media, which failed to manage the broadcast of the opening ceremony.

Under the neoliberal administration of President Javier Milei, public broadcasting has limited coverage to just ten of the tournament's matches played in the United States, Mexico and Canada. This figure contrasts dramatically with the coverage of Qatar 2022, the year in which the channel broadcast all the meetings, also achieving a positive economic balance for the state entity.

Four unions have denounced that programming has been ceded to private interests, criticizing a model in which the State abandons its production capacity to open the business to third parties, while staff salaries have been frozen for two years. According to the union, this structural emptying is combined with the destruction of equipment and the lack of investment.

In this regard, Agustín Lecchi, general secretary of the Buenos Aires Press Union (SIPREBA), highlighted the efforts of the staff in the face of this crisis. “If the channel is on the air, it's only because of the professionalism of our colleagues who do everything despite structural emptying, destruction of equipment and lack of investment. On top of all that, they privatize the screen and do business,” said the leader.

Mazo News Team