The Six Nations is to remain on free-to-air TV after an agreement was reached in principle with the current broadcasters ITV and the BBC. ITV will broadcast two-thirds of the matches of the men’s tournament for the next four years - including England home games - while the BBC is set for rights to the women’s championship.
Tournament organisers announced yesterday on Friday that they had entered into exclusive discussions with the two broadcasters for a four-year deal which would begin next year and run through to 2025. When organisers confirmed a £365m five-year investment deal with the private equity firm CV in March there were fears that the championship would move behind a paywall but the decision to keep all matches on terrestrial TV is a huge boost for the sport in the post-pandemic era. All of this year’s matches were played behind closed doors with TV audiences peaking at 8.4m for Scotland’s win over England.
The Six Nations is in Group B of the government’s listed sporting events, meaning only highlights must be shown on free-to-air TV. A proposal from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport select committee to guarantee its status on terrestrial TV was rejected last year but amid ongoing political pressure, and in the absence of a blockbuster bid from a pay-TV broadcaster given the current state of the broadcasting rights market, BBC and ITV have prevailed.
As part of the new deal, ITV will show home matches for the England, Ireland, France and Italy men’s teams while the BBC will have the rights to Scotland and Wales, the women’s and the under-20s competition. The previous deal with the two broadcasters was worth £90m a year and organisers had hoped for a significant increase to around £150m. That, however, seems unlikely even if a modest increase will be expected.
“This is exciting news for fans and for our championships,” said the Six Nations chief executive, Ben Morel. “Both BBC and ITV have been excellent partners in recent years, playing an important role in sharing the incredible moments that the Six Nations always produces, and celebrating the special place our championships hold in the hearts of fans.
“I am particularly excited by the opportunity to grow the women’s game with an invested broadcast partner in the BBC who is as committed as we are. We are looking forward to working with them both as we continue to bring rugby’s greatest championships to ever-growing numbers across the UK.”
