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FIFA Women's World Cup Lands Historic Broadcast Deal

Originally posted on The Spun | By Kameron Duncan | Last updated Dec 20, 2024 10:14 AM ET

Women's soccer has been a major sport in the United States for decades, largely due to the United States women's national team's dominance on the world stage.

The team has won the World Cup four times and has won Olympic gold five times, including earlier this year.

There's a pretty good chance that the USWNT will be ranked No. 1 in the world for the next World Cup in 2027, and fans will have the chance to watch the tournament in an exciting new way.

On Friday, FIFA announced that Netflix will be the exclusive broadcast partner for the Women's World Cup in 2027 and 2031.

Fans will have exclusive access to every match of the tournament, live on the streaming platform. The agreement includes studio shows and covers multiple languages, with a special focus on alternate Spanish broadcasts for American audiences.

Netflix also announced that special documentary content will be released in advance of the tournaments to give fans more of a connection to teams and players.

“This is a landmark moment for sports media rights,” said FIFA president Gianni Infantino.

“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."

The acquisition of rights for the Women's World Cup shows Netflix's continued commitment to live programming, with a particular focus on sports. The streamer will broadcast two NFL games live on Christmas Day, and will be the home of WWE's flagship show "Monday Night Raw" every week starting in January.

PARIS, FRANCE - AUGUST 10: (L-R) Casey Krueger, Lynn Williams and Lindsey Horan #10 of Team United States pose for a photo after the Women's Football Medal Ceremony during the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Parc des Princes on August 10, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)Justin Setterfield/Getty Images

As audiences continue to transition away from cable and traditional television, leagues and competitions will meet them where they are.

Over the last few years, we've seen major American sports embrace streaming, with the NFL's addition of Thursday Night Football on Amazon Prime Video being the most significant.

The NBA will be on Prime Video next season, as well as on NBC with a large presence on their streaming platform, Peacock.

We'll see how the addition of the Women's World Cup to Netflix affects the impact of women's soccer in America, and how fans respond to having the tournament on a streaming service instead of traditional television for the first time.

This article first appeared on The Spun and was syndicated with permission.

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