New Delhi: Netflix has secured the exclusive rights for broadcast in the United States for the 2027 and 2031 Women’s World Cup editions. This will be the first time the Women’s World Cup will be broadcast on a streaming service, and the coverage will be broadcast in multiple languages. Though the evaluation of the deal remains undisclosed, FIFA has themselves said that this is “historic”.
Earlier, Netflix streamed documentaries on the USWNT and the Spanish national side for the 2023 competition. They will now produce a documentary series before both these tournaments. FIFA’s president, Gianni Infantino, has said that it is a “landmark moment for sports media rights.” Infantino further stated that FIFA’s long-term partner Netflix has shown a lot of “commitment to the growth of women’s football, and the deal is a testament to what the real value is of the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Netflix has exclusive U.S. rights to the FIFA Women’s World Cup for the 2027 and 2031 tournaments. pic.twitter.com/aY3QYcLgAe
— Netflix (@netflix) December 20, 2024
In their official statement, FIFA noted that fans will get access to every live match, including studio shows. Although Netflix has been known for making sports documentaries for a while now, they are still new to the streaming of live matches. In November, Netflix streamed its first live boxing event between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul along with the co-main event, Katie Taylor vs Amanda Serrano, which had 74 million viewers, the most watched professional women’s sports event in US history ever.
Netflix chief content officer Bela Bajaria noted that the success of the boxing event between Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor showcased the following women’s sports. Bajaria noted that streaming this tournament will celebrate the players and culture and the rise in the passion for women’s sports.
Netflix entering the streaming of live sports events
While there were issues during the boxing matches due to buffering and streaming. Netflix now have the rights to two NFL games on Christmas Day: Kansas City Chiefs at the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Baltimore Ravens at the Houston Texans. This will mark their first venture into live-action sports.
In the USA, media giant Fox had broadcasting rights, while in Puerto Rico, the matches were broadcast by the terrestrial channel Telemundo. The Netflix deal will see broadcast of the games in both countries through the OTT platform, with big talents being recruited for broadcast in both Spanish and English.
The 2023 World Cup was the first time where broadcasters made separate bids as opposed to earlier when the tournament was an add-on package when they bought the Men’s World Cup rights. The competition was won by Spain, who beat England 1-0 in the final.
Back in 2023, Infantino had chastised the broadcasters publicly for the bids they had made for the tournament. The 2027 World Cup will be held in Brazil and will include 32 teams in the competition. In April, USA Soccer and the Mexican Soccer Federation announced their intention to jointly bid for the 2031 World Cup after having withdrawn from the 2027 biddings.
In May 2023, even English Football Association chairwoman Debbie Hewitt had described the proposition of England hosting the tournament as tempting.
Netflix have secured ‘landmark’ deal with FIFA for streaming rights of 2027 and 2031 editions of the Women’s World Cup. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
