Sky Sports will broadcast all World Cups in Great Britain and Ireland for an undisclosed amount under an exclusive eight-year deal with the ICC.
The deal marks the first direct contractual relationship between the two organizations and is part of ICC’s efforts to sell media rights separately in its major markets.
Last August, Disney Star* secured broadcasting rights in the Indian market to air all ICC events from 2024 to his 2027 in a major deal. The ICC has published bids for the sale of these rights, with several bidders participating. The ICC then put the rights for the US market up for sale, but there were no further renewals. However, there was no bidding process for the UK market. In a media release on Friday, the ICC said it had decided to work directly with Sky, who already has a long-term broadcasting deal with the ECB, to broadcast cricket to both men and women in the UK.
It is understood that instead of a bidding process, the ICC considered that he considered the relationship between the ECB and Sky and believed it would be beneficial to conduct a direct transaction with Sky. The ICC felt this would simplify things from a production and marketing perspective.
The partnership will see Sky and its streaming service NOW retain the broadcast and digital rights to all his men’s and women’s ICC events, including the ODI and T20I World Championships, from 2024 until the end of 2031. . Over the course of the partnership, Sky will broadcast 28 international events. This includes both the men’s and women’s showcases each year, as well as his biennial World Test Championship finals and U19 tournaments. Three of these events have already been confirmed to take place in the UK: the 2025 World Test Championship Final, the 2026 Women’s T20 World Championship and the 2030 Men’s T20 World Championship.
ICC CEO Geoff Allardice said the partnership offers “exciting opportunities for innovative collaboration.”
“We are confident that this partnership will support our long-term goal of attracting more players and fans to the game,” he said.
Sky Sports’ he MD Jonathan Licht has more people in the market following England’s women’s success at the 2017 World Cup and men’s double wins at the 50 Over World Cup and his T20 World Cup. He said he follows cricket at the highest level. both trophies. “This new direct partnership with the ICC means Sky Sports viewers in the UK and Ireland will enjoy every ball, run, wicket and catch of every international tournament for years to come. to,” he said.
The 2019 Men’s World Cup, hosted by England, set record average viewership for a British cricket tournament and highest peak in UK TV viewership as Sky shared rights to the final with Channel 4 8.8 million recorded. England’s victory over Pakistan in the final of his Cup at the men’s T20 Worlds in Australia last year was his most-watched T20 match in England after forging a similar partnership with the terrestrial broadcaster. bottom.