SBS take over World Cup broadcasting for next 48 hours

Free-to-air broadcaster SBS have announced they will broadcast every match from the World Cup for the next 48 hours while Optus work to resolve their technical issues.

Five days into the tournament, Aussie fans relying on Optus Sport's streaming service to watch the matches have been left infuriated by incessant connection problems, which reached a head last night.

An SBS news statement released on Monday night read, "SBS will air all FIFA World Cup games for the next 48 hours following discussions with Optus amid issues with the Optus Sport streaming service."

"The FIFA World Cup is a true multicultural celebration that unites Australia’s diverse communities and SBS is pleased to be bringing more of the tournament to Australian audiences."

SBS was already due to broadcast England's opening game against Tunisia at 4:00am AEST tomorrow morning, and Colombia v Japan at 10:00pm tomorrow evening, but will now show an additional four games.

Optus CEO Allen Lew said his network had agreed to 'simulcast' the matches in the interests of "the world's most passionate and vocal fans," but insisted most viewers have had a positive experience.

"We clearly understand Australia's passion for this event and the frustration that goes along with not being able to watch it," he said.

"I acknowledge the experience has not been consistent for all viewers, which is unacceptable. I offer an unreserved apology to those customers that have been let down. We are confident we have a solution in place and will be using this time to undertake robust testing," he added.

The chief pundit of the coverage on SBS, former Socceroo Craig Foster, celebrated the news on Twitter.

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We are delighted to be able to broadcast all World Cup matches over the next 48 hours. Importantly, Australia has made abundantly clear how important the World Cup is to the nation https://t.co/4v3VMHIWmX
— Craig Foster (@Craig_Foster) June 18, 2018

The full list of fixtures that SBS will broadcast live over the next 48 hours is as follows (all times AEST):

Sweden v South Korea
Monday, 10:00pm

Belgium v Panama
Tuesday, 1:00am

Tunisia v England
Tuesday, 4:00am

Colombia v Japan
Tuesday 10:00pm

Poland v Senegal
Wednesday, 1:00am

Russia v Egypt
Wednesday, 4:00am