Bt Sport Acquires Women’s Tennis Rights

BT Sport has agreed a new deal with the Women’s Tennis Association to acquire a package of rights to show live women’s tennis, as the channel bolsters its rights portfolio ahead of its launch later this summer.

The new channel will show live matches from 21 WTA tournaments across the globe, as world number one Victoria Azarenka battles with challengers, including Maria Sharapova and the Williams sisters, to retain her top WTA ranking.

The announcement coincides with an upturn in fortunes for British women’s tennis, with two British players, Laura Robson and Heather Watson, both ranked in the WTA Top-50 for the first time since July 1987.

Watson became the first British woman since 1988 to win a WTA title when she triumphed in the HP Japan Women’s Open in Osaka last October. The following month, Robson, who won Olympic silver at the London 2012 mixed doubles alongside Andy Murray, was voted the WTA Newcomer of the Year for 2012.

The four-year deal includes the five elite WTA tournaments – Indian Wells, Miami, Madrid, Beijing and Istanbul – although the WTA rights do not include Grand Slam coverage. During the 2013 season, the rights will be held jointly with previous holder Eurosport, with the UK rights exclusively owned by BT Sport from 2014.

The broadcaster, which has already secured rights to the Barclays Premier League and Premiership rugby in the UK, intends to broadcast as much as 800 hours a year of live tennis from the tour. The deal runs from this year until the end of 2016 and includes coverage of 21 tournaments per year.

Simon Green, head of BT Sport, said: ‘This is our first women’s sport for the channels and we see a genuine opportunity to really develop the exposure for women’s sport with our new channels. We are focusing on several more women’s sports and we hope to be able to announce more rights soon.’

‘Women’s tennis is the highest profile women’s sport, attracting a global audience of 185 million viewers. It’s a good moment for the British women, with Laura and Heather starting to challenge for honours. We want to follow their story over the next few years, as well as showcasing the world’s best players in the tournaments that help determine their world rankings.”