Women’s cricket will be shown on terrestrial television for the first time after the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) signed a landmark deal with Channel 5.
The deal lasts until 2019 and will see highlights of all England women’s home games broadcast on the channel, including Tests, One Day Internationals and Twenty20 Internationals.
England’s female team has just won the 2017 World Cup on home soil, resulting in surge of interest from the public and media.
Clare Connor, ECB director of England women’s cricket, said the deal was “another huge step forward for international women’s cricket”.
“The ticket sales and viewing figures from the World Cup showed there is a growing audience for our game and this platform will give us the chance to further capitalise on that,” she added.
Channel 5 has broadcast the highlights of the men’s England cricket team since 2006, although the BBC will regain the rights in 2020.
Women’s cricket highlights will retain the primetime spot that has been afforded to the men’s game, confirmed the free-to-air broadcaster.
“We’re delighted to offer the world-conquering England women’s cricket team a terrestrial TV platform as cricket continues to broaden its appeal and attract even more women and girls to the sport,” added Paul Dunthorne, COO of VIMN UK, the owner of Channel 5.
