The FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 in Australia and New Zealand, arguably the biggest women’s football tournament to date, generated less than 10% of the revenue of the FIFA (Men’s) World Cup 2022 in Qatar for FIFA. In comparison to the record revenue of EUR 244 million generated by the World Cup, the men’s competition grossed USD 2.9 billion. However, there have been important developments in the broadcasting rights in women’s football, with several top leagues announcing record-breaking deals.

The following graphics show the top five broadcasting rights in women’s football by event/season:

FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023

• Media rights value: estimated 70-100 million $ (broadcaster varying by nation)
• Revenue: 570 million $
• Overall attendance: 1,978,274
• Social media reach: > 3 billion views

The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, dubbed the ‘a World Cup of Firsts’ by FIFA, featured 32 teams for the first time instead of the previous 24, which meant not only more competition but also more matches to be marketed. The tournament, organised by Australia and New Zealand, was the first ever Women’s World Cup to break even, with revenues of 570 million US dollars. On top of that, the competition not only attracted a total of 1,978,274 spectators to the stadiums, but also reached an even larger audience via social media with over 3 billion views of content on FIFA’s social and digital platforms.

According to Omdia, the costs for the media rights to the 2023 World Cup were estimated at between 70 and 100 million US dollars. Although this figure marks a new high in the history of the tournament, FIFA had originally expected an even higher sum. According to reports, the association was hoping for 150 million US dollars in new revenue. However, this forecast was dashed by a broadcasting fiasco, as several media organisations, particularly those of the ‘Big Five’ (Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain), were unwilling to pay the expected high prices.

For the next World Cup tournaments, FIFA already announced an agreement with Netflix to broadcast the 2027 and 2031 World Cups in the USA. This is the most significant agreement FIFA has signed with a streaming service for a major tournament.

Broadcasting Rights: National womens soccer league

• Media rights value: 60 million $ per season (from 2024; ESPN, CBS, Amazon, and Scripps)
• Revenue: 215 million $ in 2024
• Overall attendance (2024): > 2 million

The National Women’s Soccer League signed the largest media domestic deal ever for a women’s sports league in 2023. Over the course of four years, the league would receive $240 million ($60 million per season) from 2024 to 2027 in a national broadcasting rights deal with CBS Sports, ESPN, Prime Video and Scripps. This deal pushed the boundaries of what was previously possible in women’s football.

The first season under the landmark agreement then underlined the continuing rise in popularity of the American league with a turnover of 215 million US dollars and a record attendance of more than 2 million spectators. In comparison, the Women’s Super League being the biggest league in Europe, only garners 8 million pounds ($9.9 million) per season.

In comparison to the previous agreement, the production costs are borne by the four broadcasting partners. Previously, the NWSL had to pay for the production of its games itself.

UEFA women’s EURO 2022

• Media rights value: 37,5 million € (broadcaster varying by nation)
• Revenue: €63.2 million
• Overall attendance: 574,875
• Social media reach: 453,3 million

UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 not only transformed the footballing quality of the participating teams and the Lionesses made history when football came home, it also set new records for a Euro tournament. It was the most-watched European Women’s Championship of all time with a global live audience of 365 million viewers across all channels.

The value of the media rights totalled 37.5 million euros, a significant increase on the 9.7 million euros of the previous edition. In addition, the EURO set a new record with 574,875 spectators in the stadium (record average of 18,544 spectators). On social media, UEFA EURO 2022 generated 453.3 million cumulative social interactions, with TikTok (38.7%) and Twitter (21.1%) having the most.

Broadcasting Rights: Women’s super league

• Media rights value: 13 million pounds per season (from 2025; Sky Sports, BBC)
• Revenue: 52 million pounds per season (2023/24)
• Overall attendance (2023/24): 971,977

In 2024, the English Women’s Super League concluded another groundbreaking league deal. This is the first long-term broadcasting rights contract negotiated by the Women’s Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL). The new company had previously taken over the two top women’s leagues in England (WSL and Women’s Championship) from the Football Association (FA). The new five-year contract begins at the start of the 2025/26 season. It will see almost all WSL matches broadcast live on television with a media rights total value of 65 million pounds (13 million pounds per season).

In the previous 2023/24 season, the league recorded a total of 971,977 spectators in the top flight alone, an increase of 41 per cent on the preceding season (689,297). On television, the clash between Manchester United and Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in March 2024 peaked at 997,000 viewers on BBC One, making it the most-watched WSL match of all time.

Broadcasting Rights: UEFA WOMEN’S CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

• Media rights value: 8,5 million € per season (DAZN, beIN Sports)
• Revenue: not indicated (15,2 million € for 2021/22 season)
• Overall attendance (2022/23): 681,175 (11,167 per match)

As the biggest club tournament in the world, the UEFA Women’s Champions League attracts a lot of attention every season. The global media and broadcasting rights, which are covered by DAZN and beIN Sports, currently amount to €9 million per season for the most important competition in European women’s football. UEFA has not released an exact revenue figure for the 2022/23 season, but it is likely to be close to the 2021/22 season figure, which was €15.2 million.

From an overall attendance point of view, the 2022/23 competition drew in 563,136 spectators during last season which was more than in the season after (563,136 -> 9,232 per match).

From the new 2025/26 season, higher numbers are expected as the new format will be introduced, with more teams competing in a league phase followed by a play-off round – as in the men’s competition. In addition, the teams that do not make it through to the next round will compete in a newly introduced second European competition, the “Women’s Europa Cup”.

For the new rights cycle starting 2025/26 (until 2029/30), experts expect the media rights value for the UEFA Women’s Champions League to significantly rise again. Discussions are already taking place.

Text: Adriana Wehrens