LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND – MARCH 24: A Sky Sports Womens Super League branded presneitng table in preparation for the live coverage ahead of the FA Women’s Super League match between Everton FC and Liverpool at Goodison Park on March 24, 2023 in Liverpool, United Kingdom. (Photo by Robbie Jay Barratt – AMA/Getty Images)
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Sky Sports will reinforce its position as the lead broadcaster of the Women’s Super League (WSL) this season with three times as many live matches beginning on Friday.
The opening game of the campaign between Chelsea and Manchester City at Stamford Bridge will be the first of 118 games shown by Sky. 78 of those will be broadcast exclusively and the company will have 75% of the top picks on matches. Of the 132 games played during the entire WSL season, Sky Sports will show 90% of them.
After its introduction in the men’s Premier League last month, Sky Sports will also use a new Multiview feature to allow fans to view up to four games simultaneously. They are promising it will provide “a dynamic new format that moves between grounds for every goal and big moment, with dedicated commentary and analysis – ensuring fans never miss a moment.”
Similar to the NFL’s RedZone, it allows coverage to move to where the action is. A single commentary team will work across all the games, which will also be broadcast individually. Multiview will be used on Sunday to simultaneously show the four midday kick-offs – Brighton & Hove Albion vs Aston Villa, Liverpool vs Everton, Manchester United vs Leicester City and Tottenham Hotspur vs West Ham United.
Those games will be shown in the new Sky Sports dedicated broadcast slot for the WSL which they hope will create for supporters “a regular and accessible appointment to watch the league.” A new flagship programme will air from 11am with sixty minutes of build-up prior to kick-off.
Women’s football superfans Rhyanna Parara and Alex Bailess also join as social reporters with Ellen Ellard as a new lead commentator. The BBC will show 21 live matches during the season, 14 of those exclusively on BBC Television beginning with Saturday’s game between Arsenal and newly-promoted London City Lionesses.
Last October, the league announced a new five-year broadcasting deal with Sky Sports and the BBC believed to be worth almost $88 million. This was an increase of over 50% per season on the previous rights deal. Sky first acquired rights to live WSL games in 2021 as part of a three-year deal. This was extended for a further season last year before the new, improved broadcast deal was negotiated.
Under the new agreement, every single WSL game will be shown live, either on television or online. Last season, 66 games were broadcast on linear television, with 44 shown by Sky and 22 by the BBC. For match highlights and exclusive interviews and content, Sky has also launched a new dedicated WSL YouTube channel which they hope will become “the go-to destination for all things women’s football.”
A new state-of-the-art television studio will be utilized for Sky Sports’ WSL coverage. In addition, a new opening title sequence will be debuted on Friday evening. “Illuminate” written by English singer Grace Davies was first used as the official song of the 2024 European Athletics Championship in Rome. Now it has been chosen to accompany coverage of the WSL throughout the season.
SKOPJE, NORTH MACEDONIA – OCTOBER 26: Grace Davies performs during the 2024 Golden Tracks Award Ceremony on October 26, 2024 in Skopje, North Macedonia. (Photo by Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images for European Athletics)
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To maximize on the interest generated by the England women’s national team winning a second successive UEFA Women’s Euro, Friday evening’s first match between Chelsea and Manchester City will be shown on UK Freeview channel Sky Mix allowing the game to reach a larger audience. Matches thereafter will be broadcast across Sky Sports Main Event, Sky Sports+, and the Sky Sports app.
Chief Sports Officer, Jonathan Licht said “this new landmark deal is hugely exciting and significant for women’s football following the success of the summer. Our new midday Sunday slot is aimed at focusing on fandom, creating habit and offering choice to fans of the WSL. We want to showcase women’s football, tell the stories of its stars, and inspire the next generation to grow the game.”
Sky Sports is the home of the WSL, showing 90% of all matches. Watch the season opener between Chelsea v Manchester City on Friday 5 September, exclusively live on Sky Sports Main Event from 6:30pm.