The Women’s Super League is concerned about the broadcast slots allocated by its main rights partner, Sky Sports, this season after only 71,000 people watched televised coverage of the flagship fixture between Arsenal and Chelsea this month.
The average audience on Sky Sports Main Event was 55,900 – lower than the 57,000 attendance at the Emirates Stadium – with a further 15,100 viewers tuning in on Sky Sports Premier League. The corresponding fixture last season attracted an audience of 732,000 because it was free-to-air on the BBC and took place during the men’s international break.
Multiple sources within the sport have said the noon Saturday kick-off time was the biggest factor behind the drop-off for that game, which is concerning for the WSL given that
Continue Reading on The Guardian
This preview shows approximately 15% of the article. Read the full story on the publisher's website to support quality journalism.