FIFA, the global governing body for soccer, has initiated the tender process for broadcast rights to its next two Women’s World Cup matches in one of the largest markets for women's soccer - the United States. This marks a significant milestone as it is the first time WWC rights are being offered on a standalone basis in this region.
An invitation to tender was officially launched by FIFA on November 4, covering rights to both the 2027 (Brazil) and unallocated 2031 editions of WWC. While primary focus lies on broadcasting rights for the tournament set to take place in Brazil – which will be aired during favorable timeslots for US audiences – interested parties can also submit offers for broadcasting rights to the yet-to-be-allocated 2031 edition.
The latter tournament is expected to see a joint hosting bid from traditional soccer powerhouses, USA and Mexico. The deadline set by FIFA for bid submissions is December 3 at 19:00 Central European Time.
Rising popularity of women's football
The United States has been an influential player in women's soccer with four victories under its belt; most recently clinching victory five years ago in France. When Canada hosted WWC back in 2015, an impressive record-breaking audience of approximately twenty-seven million tuned into watch USA triumph over Japan with a scoreline of five goals against two.
However, despite being favorites at Australia and New Zealand’s mid-2023 edition, Team USA fell short after losing out on penalties against Sweden during round-of-16 matches. Fox (English-language) and Telemundo Deportes (Spanish-language) networks broadcasted this tournament as part of their wider deal with FIFA that was announced back in 2015.
Lucrative business of broadcasting rights
The Fox deal, which also includes the 2026 men’s FIFA World Cup matches to be held across the US, Canada, and Mexico, is reported to be worth a whopping $235 million in total.
Meanwhile, the National Women's Soccer League in the US has secured four broadcast partners – CBS Sports, ESPN, Prime Video and Scripps – as part of a $240-million deal announced last November. This agreement is hailed as the most lucrative media rights agreement for a women's sports property ever.
FIFA is currently focusing its efforts on finding broadcast partners for the men’s World Cup scheduled for 2024. In late October, European Broadcast Union (EBU), an umbrella body of free-to-air broadcasters announced TV and radio broadcast rights to both 2026 and 2030 men’s editions in five markets including Bulgaria, Czechia (only for 2026), Hungary and Israel. As far as WWC goes - Brazil emerged victorious against Germany-Belgium-Netherlands joint submission to host WWC in May this year. This will mark South America's debut as hosts for this prestigious tournament.
