Sky increases commitment to women’s sport

Sky Sports will increase its investment in and coverage of women’s sport in 2020, the broadcaster has announced.

In a statement, Sky Sports said that it will make more live women’s sport available on its YouTube channel. This includes the Women’s Six Nations rugby union tournament, the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), the Netball Superleague and women’s cricket.

Sky also said that it will ramp up investment in original women’s sports content and programming, such as interviews, debates and long-form content. Series include Extraordinary Women, Training with MMA Star Leah McCourt and My Life in Lyon following the England footballer Lucy Bronze.

This increased coverage will take place across Sky’s range of Sports channels, including Main Event, Action, Arena, cricket, golf and Sky Sports Mix which will show a number of key events this year.

Rob Webster, managing director of Sky Sports, said: “Sky Sports has been a long-standing partner and champion of women’s sport and this is a natural next step to ensure that brand new audiences are able to connect with the drama and excitement created by the players and teams. We appreciate the responsibility we have, we know the platforms we own help sports grow and prosper, this is an important step in the right direction for our all-round coverage of women’s sport.”

Georgina Faulkner, head of Multisport, said: “Sky Sports are investing in a 360 approach to covering women’s sport. The live streaming will bring fans closer to the action, the 24/7 rolling Sky Sports News coverage will keep fans constantly updated and our world-class digital production and storytelling will peel back the layers of women’s sport like never-before. This digital-led initiative will bring more sporting stories to new audiences with the ambition of creating long-term connections for both existing and future generations.”