The English Women’s Championship is taking to YouTube as well as maintaining its existing domestic broadcasting arrangements according to The Guardian.
The media outlet reports that all fixtures during the 2025/26 season will be distributed via the English second-flight’s YouTube channel. This will significantly expand the league’s visibility, with its TV distribution being fairly limited in comparison to other leagues.
As it stands, the Women’s Championship is covered under the scope of the joint broadcast deal for the Women’s Super League (WSL), the English women’s top-flight, signed between BBC Sport and Sky Sports.
The £65m deal granted 118 matches per season to Sky Sports, 78 being exclusive, with 34 shared between Sky and the Women’s Professional League Ltd’s (WPLL) YouTube channel and seven with the BBC.
The deal allows Sky to cover select Women’s Championship matches when it wants to, but the ad hoc nature of this means that the league is not guaranteed steady and regular media coverage.
By turning to YouTube, the league will guarantee regular distribution of its fixtures whilst also potentially appealing to a younger demographic, one which is more digitally native and could provide a foundation for future growth for the sport.
YouTube distribution will still require production, however, The Guardian reports. This could present a solid opportunity for prospective broadcasting production partners, with the Guardian claiming that a tender process can be expected in the coming weeks.
Lastly, the reported plan showcases the increasingly prominent role YouTube is playing in contemporary sports. The platform has already been used to broadcast non-teleivised WSL matches, with the Guardian reporting earlier this year that viewership had tripled as a result.
Outside of women’s football, YouTube has been finding a place in the broadcasting strategies of other sports scenes. The final to the men’s UEFA Champions League has been shown on the platform, and it was featured in Channel 4’s coverage of this year’s Paralympics.
