Say goodbye to DStv SuperSport as you know it

SuperSport is changing in front of viewers’ eyes as Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice enables it to leverage the French giant’s infrastructure. 

On the surface, this appears most clearly during the broadcast of European sporting fixtures, such as the UEFA Champions League.

During SuperSport’s normal broadcast of these fixtures, viewers would have seen and heard from Canal+ pundits at the stadiums before the game and afterwards for analysis. 

These pundits were broadcast alongside SuperSport’s traditional Randburg studio, with its own local analysts and presenters. 

This mimics the format of other major non-European broadcasters, such as CBS, which typically broadcast from a studio and have a producer or pundit at major games to interview players and provide analysis. 

It is one surface-level indication of how things are changing at SuperSport following Canal+’s acquisition of MultiChoice, which was completed in July 2026. 

Such changes enable SuperSport to enhance its offering without increasing its cost base. 

Canal+ can effectively make its investment in on-site pundits and producers doubly rewarding by using them across its European channels and SuperSport. 

Crucially for SuperSport, this allows it to piggyback off Canal+’s financial might, which will become more apparent when bidding for sports rights in the future. 

For Canal+, it enables it to use its pundits in front of an English-speaking audience across Africa, allowing it to cover the entire continent effectively. 

Coverage of both Anglophone and Francophone Africa was a major reason for Canal+ wanting to acquire MultiChoice. The French giant is the first pay-TV provider to cover both of Africa’s major language blocs.

In a document discussing the companies’ post-merger synergies, Canal+ CEO Maxime Saada described the deal as transformational for the French company. 

“With the acquisition of MultiChoice, Canal+ has created a unique global entertainment platform anchored in Europe and Africa,” Saada said. 

The merger was not only about Canal+ expanding its presence into Anglophone Africa, but is also expected to deliver significant cost savings and synergies. 

The example of the double-use of pundits is a surface-level indication of these cost-savings and synergies. 

R7.3 billion gold mine

Canal+ estimates the value of potential synergies across its cost base of €400 million (R7.3 billion) in earnings and €300 million (R5.5 billion) in free cash flow. 

These synergies are expected to be realised from 2030 onwards as sporting rights roll over and the companies’ merger is completed. 

The first major synergy was the combination of Canal+ and MultiChoice’s management teams in Africa under David Mignot. This creates natural efficiencies in reducing two full management teams to one.

“Immediately following the completion of the acquisition, the integration of MultiChoice and Canal+ commenced with the creation of a diverse and unified management team,” Canal+ said. 

This was coupled with the implementation of Canal+ structure and processes across the business. 

“Following an in-depth review, significant synergy opportunities have been confirmed,” it said. 

A more visible change for consumers was the shutdown of Showmax on 30 April 2026, following Canal+’s review of the business. 

The Showmax streaming offering is set to be replaced by Canal+’s own in-house streaming platform, which, when combined with MultiChoice’s library, will have a significant content catalogue. 

Primarily, Canal+ aims to leverage economies of scale to reduce its cost base and use its financial might to acquire sports rights that can be used across Africa. 

The main areas of cost synergies comprise: 

• Content: includes rationalisation of internal content and negotiations with sports and general entertainment rights holders.
• Technology and other:  includes renegotiation of hardware prices, optimisation of broadcast infrastructure, convergence of tech infrastructure, rationalisation of brand and marketing, and optimisation of financing costs.

It said that actions already taken by Canal+ have resulted in free cash flow synergies of over €80 million (R1.47 billion). 

Ripples across the market

Former Telkom CEO and major investor in Canal+ Sipho Maseko explained that the merger of the companies will reshape South Africa’s pay-TV market. 

Maseko said that Canal+’s scale and expertise will greatly enhance the viewing experience of DStv customers in South Africa, helping to differentiate it from other platforms. 

Crucially, Canal+ can leverage local sports rights to differentiate it from American streaming giants such as Netflix and Amazon Prime. 

It can also use its scale to leverage viewership data to deliver more tailored content to local consumers, Maseko said. 

For example, while the Western Cape may be tuned into a Springbok match, large parts of KwaZulu-Natal are watching football.

Across Africa, the differences may be even larger. This will change how Canal+ approaches sports rights and which tournaments they want to bid for. 

Maseko said Canal+ understands the value of different sporting codes and their contribution to audience numbers.

He identified the FIFA World Cup, the Africa Cup of Nations, and the Rugby World Cup as three major drivers of viewing growth.

Meanwhile, other popular sports, such as Formula One, do not attract the same level of viewership. This understanding could influence how Canal+ negotiates sports rights in future.

The main difference will be how local people engage with content, as local sports teams and players tend to drive viewership, whereas big global brands do so in some cases. 

“That data begins to help you then really think about how you package things,” he said. This could result in changes to how sports content is acquired, packaged, and priced for DStv customers.