GENEVA — Netflix has reached a deal with FIFA for exclusive US broadcasting rights for the 2027 and 2031 Women’s World Cup tournaments.
Soccer’s global governing body confirmed the agreement with the streaming giant on Friday. Financial terms were not disclosed.
“This is a landmark moment for sports media rights,” FIFA president Gianni Infantino said according to Reuters.
“As a marquee brand and FIFA’s new long-term partner, Netflix has shown a very strong level of commitment to growing women’s football.
“This agreement sends a strong message about the real value of the FIFA Women’s World Cup and the global women’s game. FIFA and Netflix partnering together makes this a truly historic day for broadcasting and for women’s football,” Infantino added.
The 2027 Women’s World Cup will take place in Brazil with 32 teams and 64 matches from June 24-July 25. The 2031 host site has not been finalized; however the US is expected to make a bid.
The World Cup tournaments for men and women typically air on free public networks in order to reach the largest audiences. The announcement marks the most significant deal to date for FIFA with a streaming service.
“Bringing this iconic tournament to Netflix isn’t just about streaming matches,” Netflix’s chief content officer Bela Bajaria said in a statement. “It’s also about celebrating the players, the culture and the passion driving the global rise of women’s sport.”
Netflix has increasingly embraced sports content in recent years, leveraging its platform to provide exclusive programming.
This strategy has previously included live broadcasts, such as the recent boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul, which attracted over 100 million viewers globally.
This partnership with FIFA signifies a transformative moment for the Women’s World Cup, as Netflix’s global platform is poised to elevate women’s football to new heights, captivating audiences worldwide.
Netflix also will broadcast two NFL games on Christmas Day: the Kansas City Chiefs at the Pittsburgh Steelers and Baltimore Ravens at the Houston Texans. That’s part of a three-year deal announced in May.
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 per cent of the men’s 2022 World Cup.
Netflix expects to spend about $17 billion on programming this year — a budget that the Los Gatos, California, company once funneled almost entirely into scripted TV series and movies.
But Netflix is now allocating a significant chunk of that money to sports and live events, a shift that has made it a formidable competitor to traditional media bidding for the same rights.
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 Liverpool, said in a telephone interview.
Spain won the 2023 Women’s World Cup after the US won the two previous titles — in France in 2019 and Canada in 2015.
More than 25 million viewers in the US watched the 2015 World Cup final, a 5-2 win over Japan, played in Vancouver, Canada, in a time zone similarly favorable to Brazil.
Ahead of the next Women’s World Cup, Netflix will “produce exclusive documentary series in the lead-up to both tournaments, spotlighting the world’s top players, their journeys and the global growth of women’s football,” FIFA said.
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