Sky are the incumbent broadcaster, but with BT Sport looking to muscle-in on the cricketing action, they are also rumoured to have put-forward a big-money bid for the rights to show the Men's World Cups in 2019 and 2023... and whoever wins that little battle will get all the big women's events, including England 2017 and New Zealand 2021, thrown in "for free".
Of course, the ICC would respond that it isn't "for free" but I ask you this:
Do you really think Sky and/or BT Sport would have bid a penny less if the women's events hadn't been included in the package?
(The answer, by the way, is No!)
With the 2017 Women's World Cup there was/is a massive opportunity to grow the game in this country; but visibility is everything; and with the games consigned to Pay-TV, how much visibility is there really going to be?
This could have been our '2005 Ashes' moment - an event that captured the wider public's imagination!
WWC '17 coulda been a contender... and we all know how that line ends!
Do you really think Sky and/or BT Sport would have bid a penny less if the women's events hadn't been included in the package?
(The answer, by the way, is No!)
With the 2017 Women's World Cup there was/is a massive opportunity to grow the game in this country; but visibility is everything; and with the games consigned to Pay-TV, how much visibility is there really going to be?
This could have been our '2005 Ashes' moment - an event that captured the wider public's imagination!
WWC '17 coulda been a contender... and we all know how that line ends!
Also I wonder how many games (other than those in which England are involved) would be available in the UK even for those with large wallets? "None" is the answer I suspect .
ReplyDeleteWhat was criminal at the T20 world cup and would be criminal at the 2017 World Cup is a scenario where the supposed broadcaster refuses to show a match live and yet is allowed to prevent some other broadcaster showing that match live.
ReplyDeleteThere is no reason why every match should not be shown either on TV or the web - other of course than male orientated contracts being signed by male orientated executives.