After a prolonged period of unresolved negotiation that led some to worry about black screens, the BBC and ITV have signed a deal to provide live coverage of the upcoming 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
The deal will see all 64 matches from the football tournament, which starts in Auckland on 20 July 20, broadcast on either of the leading UK broadcasters, except for the Final, which will be shown across both BBC One and ITV1.
Across BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds, TV, radio and online, the BBC will bring audiences 2023 FIFA World Cup live coverage, entertainment, analysis and discussion. ITV will show coverage of half of the tournament’s matches across ITV1 and ITV4 with simulcast and catchup on ITVX. Match highlights will also be on ITVX as well as ITV's social media platforms. And build up programming will be shown on ITV4/ITVX ahead of the tournament.
“We have shown every Women’s World Cup on the BBC since 1999 and we are happy to extend our partnership with FIFA for the upcoming tournament,” said director of BBC Sport Barbara Slater. “The growth of the women’s game is extraordinary, demonstrated by the 28 million who watched BBC coverage of the 2019 Women’s World Cup and the huge audience of 17.4 million who watched our coverage of the Euro 2022 final on TV last summer. In partnership with ITV we are delighted to make this World Cup available to the widest possible audience and free to air.”
“We’re delighted to be able to bring comprehensive coverage of the Women’s World Cup, free to air to our audiences with both live and highlights broadcasts across ITV and ITVX,” added ITV director of sport Niall Sloane. “This tournament promises to provide memorable moments with the popularity of women’s football continuing to grow. England’s Lionesses are entering the World Cup Finals as European champions and fans have been able to follow their progress to qualification on ITV through our coverage of the World Cup qualifiers, so we hope they’ll join us to see all the action from Australia and New Zealand throughout the tournament.”
In the move, the BBC and ITV partnered with fellow public service media organisations in the European Broadcast Union (EBU).
BBC Sport’s rights portfolio also includes Women’s Super League, the Olympic Games, The FA Cup, Wimbledon Championships, the Six Nations and the Premier League.
Across BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds, TV, radio and online, the BBC will bring audiences 2023 FIFA World Cup live coverage, entertainment, analysis and discussion. ITV will show coverage of half of the tournament’s matches across ITV1 and ITV4 with simulcast and catchup on ITVX. Match highlights will also be on ITVX as well as ITV's social media platforms. And build up programming will be shown on ITV4/ITVX ahead of the tournament.
“We have shown every Women’s World Cup on the BBC since 1999 and we are happy to extend our partnership with FIFA for the upcoming tournament,” said director of BBC Sport Barbara Slater. “The growth of the women’s game is extraordinary, demonstrated by the 28 million who watched BBC coverage of the 2019 Women’s World Cup and the huge audience of 17.4 million who watched our coverage of the Euro 2022 final on TV last summer. In partnership with ITV we are delighted to make this World Cup available to the widest possible audience and free to air.”
“We’re delighted to be able to bring comprehensive coverage of the Women’s World Cup, free to air to our audiences with both live and highlights broadcasts across ITV and ITVX,” added ITV director of sport Niall Sloane. “This tournament promises to provide memorable moments with the popularity of women’s football continuing to grow. England’s Lionesses are entering the World Cup Finals as European champions and fans have been able to follow their progress to qualification on ITV through our coverage of the World Cup qualifiers, so we hope they’ll join us to see all the action from Australia and New Zealand throughout the tournament.”
In the move, the BBC and ITV partnered with fellow public service media organisations in the European Broadcast Union (EBU).
BBC Sport’s rights portfolio also includes Women’s Super League, the Olympic Games, The FA Cup, Wimbledon Championships, the Six Nations and the Premier League.
