Digital streaming platforms Toffee, Bioscope, and iScreen faced outrage and complaints from football fans after technical disruptions affected their coverage during the opening match of the FIFA World Cup 2026 on Friday. 

The disappointed fans took to social media to express their frustration and sought explanations from the local OTT and streaming platforms.

Users reported buffering, login failures, payment and OTP-related problems, and interrupted streams during the tournament opener and opening ceremony, with many saying they were unable to watch the match despite purchasing packages to access the service. 

Toffee, operated by Banglalink, secured the digital streaming rights for the global event in Bangladesh after lots of drama from state-owned Bangladesh Television and promoted itself as the country's official online destination for the tournament.

The disruptions came at a crucial moment as football fans flocked to the platform for the opening fixture of the expanded 48-team tournament being staged across the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

Social media users complained of lagging streams and difficulties accessing live coverage, while some questioned the preparation of the platforms for the surge in traffic generated by the World Cup opener.

The problems contrasted with Toffee’s early success during the 2022 World Cup, when the platform recorded millions of viewers and emerged as a major digital destination for football fans in Bangladesh.

Toffee issued a public explanation regarding the issues on their Facebook page, stating that, ‘Due to complications related to the digital broadcast feed, the live broadcast of the World Cup is disrupted. We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience.’

The much-awaited World Cup commenced with a grand opening ceremony, following dazzling performances from artists all over the world.

Host nation Mexico beat South Africa 2-0 at the iconic Estadio Azteca. The match turned out to be a physical game, with the referee showing three red cards.