FIFA signs Netflix to US broadcast deal for the Women's World Cup in 2027 and 2031
FIFA has signed Netflix to a United States broadcast deal for the Women’s World Cup in 2027 plus the 2031 edition that could be played in the U.S. The deal announced Friday is the most significant FIFA has signed with a streaming service for a major to...
GENEVA — FIFA has signed Netflix to a United States broadcast deal for the 2027 Women's World Cup in Brazil plus the 2031 edition that could be played in the U.S.
The deal announced Friday is the most significant FIFA has signed with a streaming service for a major tournament. The value was not given, though international competitions in women’s soccer have struggled to draw high-value offers.
World Cups are typically broadcast on free-to-air public networks to reach the biggest audiences, and the last women's edition in 2023 earned FIFA less than 10% of the men's 2022 World Cup.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino had publicly criticized public broadcasters, especially in Europe, for undervaluing offers to broadcast the 2023 tournament that was played in Australia and New Zealand. That tournament was broadcast by Fox in the U.S.
«This agreement sends a strong message about the real value of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the global women’s game,» Infantino said Friday in a statement.
FIFA will likely use the Netflix deal to drive talks with European broadcasters that likely will be hardball negotiations.
Soccer finance expert Kieran Maguire, a co-host of The Price of Football podcast, suggested the deal was “a bit of a gamble" for FIFA and “saber-rattling” by Infantino.
“(Netflix) get experience of football broadcasting, FIFA can say, ‘we are now partnering with a blue chip organization, so watch out you nasty Europeans,’” Maguire, an academic at the University of
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