Disney+ takes on SuperSport with ESPN channels

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Victoria from Techpoint here,

Disney+ adds ESPN to South Africa at no extra cost

Breni is breaking language barriers in learning

Mawingu raises $20M to expand Internet in Kenya

Disney+ adds ESPN to South Africa at no extra cost

Disney+ is finally stepping up its South African game, and it’s coming with sports. The platform has just added ESPN and ESPN2 to its local lineup, giving subscribers access to live international leagues, news, studio shows, and award-winning documentaries. The best part? It comes at no extra cost.

Subscribers on both the Premium and Mobile plans (with 18+ enabled) now get to stream everything from football and basketball to rugby and American sports. Parents can still lock things down with PINs, while existing DStv users can continue watching ESPN through SuperSport.

This move couldn’t have come at a more interesting time. Streaming services are in an arms race with traditional broadcasters over live sports, one of the last frontiers of television. While MultiChoice’s SuperSport has long dominated African sports broadcasting, Disney+ is now signalling that streaming can play in that space too.

Globally, Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, and Netflix have all been experimenting with live sports. By bringing ESPN channels to South Africa, Disney+ is giving fans more flexibility — stream on a phone, TV, or laptop — and breaking the old reliance on satellite subscriptions.

For South Africans, this means more access to international leagues without paying extra or worrying about location. It’s also a win for younger, digital-first viewers who already prefer streaming over TV. In a country where mobile devices and internet access keep improving, this feels like the natural next step in entertainment.

And looking ahead? If Disney+ can make ESPN work in South Africa, it sets the tone for the rest of Africa. More streaming platforms could be forced to jump into live sports, creating new options, more competition, and a completely different way of experiencing sports across the continent.

Breni is breaking language barriers in learning

Some kids need silence to learn, others prefer group work, and some just want videos instead of thick textbooks. But in most Nigerian schools, it’s the same old “one-size-fits-all” approach, and that leaves plenty of students behind, especially in Northern Nigeria, where language barriers, slow assimilation, and limited tech access make things harder. That’s the problem Abubakar Sadiq Umar is trying to solve with Breni.

“There’s this educational dilemma where 21st-century kids are being taught by 20th-century teachers using a 19th-century curriculum on an 18th-century calendar,” Umar told Techpoint Africa. After years working across digital marketing, blockchain, and business analysis, from Northflix to fintechs like Kayi and Betastack, he decided it was time to apply those skills to education.

The result is Breni, an AI-powered personalised learning app that adapts to individual learning styles and languages. Launched in August 2025, Breni already boasts 3,000 users across more than 20 countries, with 90% of them outside Nigeria, proof that education gaps exist everywhere, not just in the north.

The company’s story is also one of friendship and shared passion. Umar and co-founder Bilal Abdullahi met as computer science students at Yusuf Maitama Sule University. After stints working together at fintech Kayi — Umar as a Senior Business Analyst, Abdullahi as a software and AI engineer — they both resigned in 2024 to build Breni full-time.

Now, with Nigeria’s edtech market valued at around $400 million, the duo is betting big on personalised, tech-driven learning. Curious to know how Breni actually works and why it’s getting global attention? Check out Delight’s latest for Techpoint Africa.

Mawingu raises $20M to expand Internet in Kenya

Mawingu, the Kenyan Internet provider that’s made a name for connecting underserved communities, has just landed a fresh $20 million Series C round. The raise was led entirely by Pembani Remgro Infrastructure Managers, a private equity fund that backs big African infrastructure projects.

The new cash will help Mawingu grow its footprint in Kenya as it pushes toward an ambitious goal, bringing affordable Internet to one million East Africans by 2028. Right now, the company serves just over 120,000 people, so this round could be a big leap forward.

CEO Farouk Ramji admits raising money in today’s climate isn’t easy. But he says the deal shows confidence in the company’s model and team. “This Series C is more than just a financing milestone. It’s a celebration of our people, our partners, and the belief that connectivity can transform lives,” he said.

This isn’t Mawingu’s first big move. Last year, the company raised $15 million to expand into Tanzania, snapping up local ISP Habari in a “buy-and-build” strategy to scale quickly across East Africa. That round brought in backers like the Africa Go Green Fund, InfraCo Africa, and Dutch development bank FMO.

The acquisition gave Mawingu instant access to the Tanzanian market, where internet penetration is still painfully low. With solar-powered wireless tech and a community-first approach, Mawingu is trying to solve the problem of cost and access that bigger telcos have struggled with in rural and peri-urban areas.

For Mawingu, it’s about more than just numbers. The company wants to bridge East Africa’s digital divide, opening up access to education, healthcare, and commerce through reliable connectivity. With $20 million now in the bag, it looks set to double down in Kenya before rolling its model across the region.

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