Betfred Super League has secured six international broadcast deals through its long-term strategic partnership with IMG.
With a set of six new international agreements, the league has guaranteed the forthcoming season will gather its largest ever national and international audience.
Rhodri Jones, Managing Director of RL Commercial, said: “The visibility of the Betfred Super League will reach new levels at home and abroad this season.”
Through the league’s collaboration with IMG, a global sports media company that is working to grow the league through media partnerships and initiatives, it has signed agreements with Fox Sports and NITV in Australia, Fox Sports in the US, Rogers Media in Canada, Premier Sports Asia and ESPN Africa.
“Now, our long-term strategic partnership with IMG has delivered a range of overseas broadcast agreements. With every match now being covered, Fox Sports will be able to show many more matches to Australian Rugby League fans – and the deal with SBS and National Indigenous Television secures free-to-air coverage in Australia for the first time,” said Jones.
In addition to the new deals, the league launched ‘SuperLeague+’ a global streaming service, which is powered by IMG sister company Endeavor Streaming. The league also has an existing deal with Sportsmax in the Caribbean that was already agreed by RDA to run until 2026.
Jones added: “We are also delighted that IMG has concluded deals with Fox Sports in the US, Rogers Media in Canada, Premier Sports Asia and ESPN Africa – while in all those cases, SuperLeague+ will remain available for fans who want to watch live coverage of every match, and is also a great new option for league fans in New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and throughout the Pacific who want to follow the international stars in our competition.”
This year IMG has taken giant steps in supporting the growth of the league, the company announced a partnership with Voono to create a free-to-play fantasy Super League game, looking to attract a younger audience.
IMG has also been working across a range of sports this year, working with the Dutch Eredivisie and announcing that Japanese football fans will be able to watch the league live, following a deal with Fujitv this month.
On top of all the new international broadcast deals, Sky Sports agreed a three-year partnership last October with Betfred Super League, an exclusive rights deal that will see the UK broadcaster showcase all 170 games for the first time.
Jones concluded: “The new three-year broadcast partnership with Sky Sports has delivered coverage of every match for the first time, allowing us to launch SuperLeague+ as a global streaming platform, and our domestic audience will be further boosted by the new agreement with the BBC including coverage of Super League as well as the Men’s, Women’s and Wheelchair Challenge Cups.”
