England Netball In Enhanced Sky Sports Broadcast Deal
England Netball and Sky Sports have announced a new multi-year broadcast deal which will see every game of the Vitality Netball Superleague game broadcast across Sky Sports channels.
The news gives the competition its greatest exposure to date, with Sky screening games across its Sky Sports Mix and Arena channels, as well as making games available for free on YouTube. The broadcaster will cover every match ‘in some format’ across live TV and streaming coverage as well as highlights.
England netball says that, as well as ensuring fans don’t miss a game, the deal will help drive new audiences for the sport, building on recent momentum in audience growth.
“It is such a pleasure to be able to announce this new deal with Sky Sports,” said Fran Connolly, CEO, England Netball.
“Over recent years they have been able to capture huge moments in our sport and bring fans closer than ever to netball.”
“We were delighted to bring elite netball back to the court during our recent Vitality Netball Legends Series, that saw the Vitality Roses play an international All Stars side, made up of talent from the Vitality Netball Superleague, and we cannot wait to continue that momentum and give our netball family something to look forward to.
“This partnership is a huge milestone for netball in this country and underlines the continued interest in our sport. The increased visibility this will bring will shine a light on the incredible role models in our game and help to inspire a nation of women and girls to take to the court.
“I am very much looking forward to our ongoing relationship with Sky Sports and hope to see more netball history made together in the coming years.”
The league will return on 12th February and will feature 11 teams, with the addition of newcomers Leeds Rhinos. The season will also be hosted behind closed doors across just two venues to ensure the league’s COVID-19 protocols can be strictly adhered to, with the first nine weeks being played at Studio 001 in Wakefield, with the remaining fixtures taking place at the Copper Box Arena in London.
A season-long testing programme will also be put in place for players and staff.
Steve Elworthy, Independent Chair, Vitality Netball Superleague, said: “As part of our partnership, Sky will broadcast more Vitality Netball Superleague games in 2021 than ever before, covering all 114 matches across the season in some format, helping to drive exposure of the league and directly benefiting our clubs and the wider netball community.
“Despite the league being played behind closed doors, the Sky partnership will enable us to not only increase visibility but also engage with new audiences – something we are all very excited about.
“Their coverage of the league is vital for the return of women’s sport in 2021 and the visibility of netball and marks a very important and groundbreaking moment for our game.”
Rob Webster, Managing Director, Sky Sports, added: “Sky Sports has been a long-term partner of netball since 2006. We are delighted to be expanding upon our existing deal to bring the thrill of the game to our audiences for years to come.
“Popularity for the sport has increased in recent years as viewing figures saw 550k people tune in to watch England’s Vitality Roses in 2019’s thrilling Netball World Cup semi-final. At Sky Sports we hope to improve on those pre-pandemic figures as we increase visibility for the sport across Sky Sports platforms.”
