Taiwan dismisses Beijing's offer to host World Cup viewers

The controversy began when China’s Taiwan Affairs Office suggested that residents of the island could bypass local broadcast limitations by using mainland apps or visiting China to watch the games. Spokesperson Chen Binhua framed the offer as a welcoming gesture to "compatriots" on the island, responding to a state media prompt regarding an entertainer who claimed the matches were unavailable in Taiwan.

Taipei’s Mainland Affairs Council quickly countered these claims, confirming that local media companies hold full broadcast rights and that the matches are widely available. The council criticized Beijing for inserting itself into trivial matters, noting that the island’s residents have no reliance on Chinese digital infrastructure for sports entertainment. Neither Taiwan nor China qualified for the current tournament. Instead, Taiwan’s government has focused its support on its remaining diplomatic allies, with Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung publicly cheering for Paraguay and Haiti as they compete on the global stage.