The Netball Super League has secured a deal with Sky Sports, with fans getting to watch all the action around the league live on the Sky Sports news channel.
The renewal of this deal marks more than 17 years that Sky Sports and the Netball Super League have worked together. Sky Sports has now solidified its commitment to the sport with a three-year partnership deal.
Under this deal, all games from the Season Opener will air on Sky Sports. The channel will also air the Semi Final Play Offs and Grand Final.
The Netball Super League returns on Saturday and fans will be able to watch the action live throughout the season on Sky Sports as part of a landmark broadcast arrangement for the sport! 🤝📺 pic.twitter.com/2cgq0ypMcu
— Sky Sports Netball (@SkyNetball) February 14, 2024
The Sky Sports YouTube channel will also air one game from every regular round. Airing some of the league’s games on YouTube will boost access to the elite-level netball competition that fans can access for free. The competition will also be available on the Sky Sports app and website.
Tapping Into Growing Netball Popularity
The director of multi-sports at Sky Sports, Helen Falkus, commented on the development saying the company was continuing its longstanding partnership with netball. With this in mind, Sky Sports was extending its deal with Netball Super League for three years.
Falkus opined,
The sport’s popularity has surged in recent years, and with the landscape of the sport’s viewing patterns continuing to evolve, this deal highlights our commitment to meeting our fans where they are, with NSL coverage shown on YouTube.
The managing director of the Netball Super League, Claire Nelson, also commented on the development saying it was a huge milestone for the league. It could guarantee that the league can showcase its sport to a larger audience while also presenting a unique opportunity for players and clubs.
Season Opener is coming in hot! 🔥
All matches will be broadcast live across @SkySports, YouTube and NetballPass.
Tune in from 10.30am with the first centre pass at 11am ⏰ pic.twitter.com/OEbLktqLqu
— Netball Super League (@NetballSL) February 14, 2024
“We remain completely committed to delivering innovation in terms of how fans consume and experience netball… also continuing to ensure that netball remains at the forefront of innovative sports broadcasting,” she said.
Nelson also talked about some plans for the league. She noted that it was working on professionalization ahead of 2025. The league also wanted to ensure that every game that is broadcast globally can be accessed by anyone who wants to watch it.
Netball fans can the new netball podcast by Spy Sports known as “Off The Court” which will also give netball fans a chance to interact with their favorite netball stars.
BBC Sport Also Secures Deal with Netball Super League
Sky Sports is not the only channel to secure a deal with the Netball Super League. BBC Sport also bagged a two-year partnership deal with the league from 2024. This deal will see the channel air one game per round during the regular season broadcast on BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website.
More details: https://t.co/DoPak8uCaL#NSL2024
— BBC Sport (@BBCSport) February 14, 2024
The deal will expand the reach of this sport while paving the way for new audiences to access offerings in the UK. BBC iPlayer will broadcast one game per round on the BBC Sport website and app. Fans around the world will also have a chance to watch all the games aired in the opening week.
While commenting on the development, the interim director at BBC Sport, Philip Bernie, opined that the live netball coverage was now more popular with audiences. Fans will now have a chance to catch up with the weekly NSL matches without additional costs. The matches will be live and aired on demand.
Bernie also hinted that the deal might have been inspired by the success of the 2023 Netball World Cup final whose audience numbers hit 1.3 million on BBC. Fans will access more live coverage as it seeks to deliver all the action of the game to a larger audience.
