In order to achieve this, consultation was done with several stakeholders (including advertisers) in order to balance the SABC's mandate as a public service broadcaster, towards sporting codes of national and continental importance, as well as its business imperatives.

SABC 2 will provide support to SABC1, which is the main channel on which parts of the tournament are currently being shown, in terms of broadcasting some of the games.

Lulama Mokhobo, the SABC’s group chief executive officer (GCEO) said, “For us as a public service broadcaster, it was important to listen to our viewer’s needs, and try to accommodate them, within our means. It is important to us that we strive to balance the diverse wants and needs of the public and we are aware that this tournament goes beyond soccer and is an important vehicle which unites people across the continent.”

Popular programmes such as SABC1’s Generations and SABC2’s Pasella have been re-scheduled to ensure that their fans still get to watch their favourite programmes.