Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) have extended their partnership for England Cricket’s exclusive television and digital rights for the next six years, until 2028. The deal includes exclusive TV rights for England Men’s and Women’s International matches, along with the County competitions across, SPN’s channels. The digital broadcasting is reserved for SPN’s OTT platform SonyLIV.
SPN is set to get access to about 250 days of international men’s cricket, which includes a 5-match Test series and limited-over series between England and India. A women’s series between the two nations is soon to start as well. There have been some thrilling encounters between England and India in the recent past, among the latest being a tied Test series (2-2), and subsequently India’s win in both the T20I and the ODI series, when they toured England.
Other iconic series like The Ashes, and matches against other top nations like Pakistan, South Africa, and New Zealand, are also included in the deal.
Besides international cricket, Sony Sports has the rights to telecast county competitions (domestic cricket in England) like the LV=Insurance County Championship (test matches), The Royal London Cup (50-over competition), and the Vitality Blast (T20 competition).
N.P. Singh, Managing Director and CEO of Sony Pictures Networks India, said that SPN has had a strong association with the ECB, enabling it to bring premiere sporting content to its viewers who enjoy cricket. The extension of the partnership is a testament to SPN’s strong portfolio of sports content in the country, which has been built and nurtured over the years.
Clare Connor, Interim CEO at ECB, said that ECB is delighted to extend its partnership with Sony for another six years to broadcast England men’s and women’s home games to a passionate global audience. The partnership also enables ECB to bring the County games to the biggest cricket audience in the world. There is a lot of fantastic cricket to look forward to after the England vs India Men’s Test series which concluded last month. There’s the women’s series between England and India next month, and fans will continue to be entertained by this contest, and more contests to come in the future.
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