WSL agrees ‘significant’ new broadcast deal with Sky Sports and BBC

The Women’s Super League (WSL) has agreed what it calls “the most significant broadcast partnership ever for women’s football” in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

The new five-year deal begins from the 2025-26 season and the Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL) says it will enable supporters to watch every game from the top league of women’s professional football in England live.

Sources briefed on the deal, who weren’t authorised to speak publicly, estimate its value in the region of £65million. The previous agreement, announced in March 2021, was for an initial three years and was worth in the region of £7m per year.

Sky Sports will show up to 118 matches as part of the agreement with 78 of those exclusive to the subscription broadcaster including every game on the season’s closing weekend.

The BBC will carry live coverage of 21 WSL matches, including 14 exclusively with seven shared between the free-to-air broadcaster and Sky.

All non-televised matches will be available to watch live on YouTube after the WSL and Championship’s official channels replaced the FA Player as the divisions’ primary streaming service for the 2024-25 season.

As part of the new deal Sky will also have the option to show Women’s Championship and Women’s League Cup games for the first time.

The BBC will also carry audio commentary of selected matches on BBC Radio 5 Live, Sounds and on local BBC radio.

As part of the new deal, in-game and post-game rights have been granted to players for the first time, meaning players will be able to show highlights on their own social media channels.

The WSL’s broadcast deal was set to expire at the end of last season but was extended for a further year by the BBC and Sky back in April.

The new rights deal is the first new, long-term broadcast deal since the WPLL took over the running of the WSL from the Football Association (FA) ahead of the 2024-25 season and Nikki Doucet, the CEO of WPLL, hailed it as “another step in the right direction” for the game.

“Agreeing the next cycle of broadcast rights was a priority for us and we are very fortunate to have two premium broadcast partners in Sky and the BBC who believe in the future and value of women’s football as much as we do,” she said.

“The growth of the game is undeniable, and this deal is another step in the right direction and positive news for the fans, the players and the clubs.

“Sky and the BBC are long-time backers and their contribution to the growth of the women’s game should not go without recognition.

“They provide excellent visibility coupled with first-class production values and we look forward to building on our partnership over the coming years.”

This article originally appeared in The Athletic.

Sports Business, UK Women's Football

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