DStv Kenya will broadcast every single match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup across all six of its subscription packages, from Access at KES 1,450 right up to Premium at KES 11,700. All 104 matches. Every tier. No upgrade required.
That is a significant break from how DStv has worked for as long as most Kenyans can remember.
Historically, marquee sport sat behind the higher tiers. Want the Premier League comfortably? Compact or higher. Want everything else? Pay more. The model used big tournaments as upgrade bait. Canal+, the French media giant that completed its $2 billion takeover of MultiChoice in September 2025, is now dismantling that approach. TechCentral has called it a strategic pivot away from using sport as a tier differentiator, and that reading looks correct.
To get more new customers in the door before kick-off, DStv Kenya has also cut hardware prices. The HD Zapper decoder now costs KES 599, down from KES 999. The Zapper bundled with the dish kit is KES 1,799, down from KES 2,499. Installation drops to KES 1,000 from KES 1,500. These are time-limited offers tied to the World Cup window.
Why Canal+ is doing this
DStv has been bleeding subscribers for years. We reported in September 2025 that DStv lost 84.2% of its active Kenyan subscribers between June 2024 and June 2025, based on Communications Authority data. Across Africa, MultiChoice’s total base shrank from 14.9 million to 14.4 million in the year to December 2025. Canal+’s Q1 2026 trading update, published on 28 April 2026, showed MultiChoice’s revenue falling from β¬657 million to β¬617 million year on year.
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The old playbook was not working. Charging more for sport pushed people toward Netflix, YouTube, free-to-air broadcasters and pirated streams. Canal+ has read the room. Its turnaround plan, a β¬100 million investment announced in March 2026, focuses on cheaper entry points, simpler packages, and bundled streaming. The company also froze the usual annual DStv price hike for 2026, the first time in years.
The World Cup move is the most visible piece of this so far. It is also the most expensive, because SuperSport pays heavily for the rights.
What else is changing
Showmax shut down on 30 April 2026 after years of losses, and we covered the shutdown announcement here and unpacked how MultiChoice itself sabotaged it. Its originals now live inside DStv Stream. Canal+ has confirmed it will list on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on 3 June 2026, becoming the first French company to do so. Group CEO Maxime Saada has also flagged plans for a content super-app that would unify Canal+, DStv, GOtv and Showmax content, and potentially bundle Netflix, Apple TV+, HBO Max and Paramount+ at discounted rates. That model already exists in Europe.
What to actually watch
The World Cup runs from 11 June to 19 July 2026 across the United States, Mexico and Canada. Forty-eight nations, 104 matches, 39 days. SuperSport will run dedicated 24-hour World Cup channels with multi-language commentary, plus a pop-up channel. Kick-off times for most matches will be late Kenyan evenings and overnight, which Canal+’s ad agency BETC has already leaned into with a SuperSport campaign titled “Sleep Can Wait.”
For Kenyan viewers, the practical takeaway is simple. If you have any active DStv decoder, you can watch the entire World Cup without paying for an upgrade. If you do not, the cheapest path in is now KES 599 for the decoder plus KES 1,450 for one month of Access. Whether enough Kenyans take that offer is the question Canal+’s turnaround actually hinges on.
