The 1st of July means we have officially crossed over into the second half of 2021, which has proved to be even more taxing than previous years. It is probably why a lot of people may have forgotten about the Tokyo Olympics, which kick off on 23rd July.
For those keen to stream the action and watch their country’s athletes battle it out, Showmax Pro will be making the Games available to stream across the African continent.
The streaming service has been focusing on live sporting events quite a bit of late, with the ongoing UEFA Euro 2020 tournament also available on the paid-for platform.
This year’s Games will likely be quite surreal for those watching, especially as strict COVID-19-related health and safety guidelines will need to be observed. Added to this will be a distinct lack of spectators given Japan is currently in its own version of lockdown, which means people attending events will be restricted.
Still the prospect of seeing athletes like Wayde van Niekerk and Chad le Clos try to repeat their efforts from the last Olympics will be worth watching.
“We are thrilled to bring all the action to our Showmax Pro subscribers to stream wherever they are, and we’ll be backing our African athletes every step of the way,” noted Yolisa Phahle, CEO for MultiChoice Connected Video regarding the announcement.
“There is no bigger – or better – celebration of sport than the Olympic Games. It’s wonderful theatre, particularly at a time when we need to be entertained, and we look forward to the best-ever broadcast offering,” added Marc Jury, SuperSport CEO.
Unlike Showmax and Showmax Mobile, there is no free 14-day trial with Pro. As such, those in South Africa wanting access to the service will look to pay R449 per month for it.
A full breakdown of pricing across Africa is as follows:
| Country | Showmax | Showmax Mobile | Showmax Pro | Showmax Pro Mobile |
| South Africa | ZAR 99 | ZAR 39 | ZAR 449 | ZAR 225 |
| Kenya | KSh 760 | KSh 300 | KSh 2 100 | KSh 1 050 |
| Uganda | UGX 30,300 | UGX 11,499 | UGX 67,200 | UGX 33,600 |
| Nigeria | NGN 2,900 | NGN 1,200 | NGN 6,300 | NGN 3,200 |
| Ghana | GHC 45.99 | GHC 16.99 | GHC 119.99 | GHC 59.99 |
| Rest of Africa | USD 7.99 | USD 2.99 | USD 17.99 | USD 8.99 |
Along with the Olympics announcement, Showmax is also launching a special bundled offer starting tomorrow. From 2nd July to 31st August, Showmax Pro subscribers who sign up for Showmax’s Sport offering will receive two months of access for the price of one.
As for what is available across the different tiers, Showmax shared the following table:
| Showmax | Showmax Mobile | Showmax Pro | Showmax Pro Mobile | |
| Football: All Champions League (SA only), Premier League, Serie A, PSL, La Liga, UEFA Euro 2020 | – | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 | – | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Athletics, pro boxing, major international marathons, & more | – | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Music channels Trace Urban, Trace Gospel | – | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| News channels Africanews, Euronews, Newzroom Afrika, SABC News (SA only) | – | – | ✓ | ✓ |
| Series, movies, kids’ shows, documentaries | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Number of concurrent streams | Two | One | Two | One |
| Smartphone and tablet apps | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Smart TV, Notebook, Android TV, Apple TV | ✓ | – | ✓ | – |
| Maximum video resolution | HD | SD | HD | SD |
| 14-day trial | ✓ | ✓ | – | – |
