Thai football fans will have an opportunity to watch the World Cup 2022 finals in Qatar, after the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) agreed today (Wednesday) to set aside only 600 million baht for the live broadcast rights in Thailand.

NBTC Acting Secretary-General Trairat Wiriyasirikul said that most of the NBTC board agreed to finance the actual expenses incurred by the Sports Authority of Thailand (SAT) for the broadcast rights for 64 matches, but only up to the 600 million baht limit.

He insisted that the allocation of money for the World Cup is within the authority of the NBTC, as it is in line with the objectives of the Broadcasting and Telecommunications Research and Development Fund for Public Interest (BTFP).

He also noted that the World Cup is one of the seven events listed in the NBTC’s “Must Have” rule.

Yesterday, two university communications faculties issued a joint statement voicing opposition to the SAT’s use of a proposed 1.6 billion baht from the BTFP to pay for the broadcast rights for the Thai audience, claiming that the expenditure did not serve the purposes of the Fund and that it catered to a limited audience.