Sky Sports Declines to Renew Long-Term Contract
Cricket South Africa (CSA) has not yet secured a UK television rights deal for England’s prominent Test series scheduled for next winter. Sky Sports has declined an offer to renew a long-term contract that expired last year.
Sky’s reluctance to continue a partnership that has lasted over 30 years has compelled CSA to seek alternative broadcast partners to ensure the three Tests over Christmas and three one-day internationals in January are televised in the UK.
Declining Value of Bilateral International Cricket
The decision is particularly notable as South Africa will also host Australia in a three-Test series in October, which is scheduled in a time zone convenient for British audiences. This situation reflects the decreasing value of bilateral international cricket.
TNT Sports, known for acquiring rights rejected by Sky—including Test series in India and Pakistan—cannot currently commit due to budget constraints and uncertainty surrounding its long-term ownership. Paramount Skydance has agreed to a $110 billion acquisition of Warner Bros Discovery, TNT’s parent company, but the deal awaits approval from United States regulators, leaving TNT in a holding pattern.
Sources at TNT have expressed interest in England’s South Africa series but indicated they cannot offer the £8 million rights fee that the broadcaster paid Cricket Australia for last winter’s Ashes. That fee was itself significantly below Cricket Australia’s initial asking price of £20 million.
While the South Africa series is not a current priority for Sky, the broadcaster may reconsider airing coverage closer to the event.
Cricket Australia Also Without UK Rights Partner
In another indication of the declining value of cricket rights, Cricket Australia has yet to secure a UK rights partner for its upcoming domestic season. This is despite England touring Australia for three one-day internationals and five T20 matches in November, followed by the 150th anniversary Test in Melbourne in March 2027.
Sky Sports has broadcast live coverage of every England Test series in South Africa since the first post-apartheid tour in 1995-96. However, the broadcaster has increasingly reduced coverage of overseas tours in recent years, except for International Cricket Council (ICC) events such as the World Cup and T20 World Cup.
Besides the Ashes, Sky has not acquired rights for series in India, Pakistan, New Zealand, and the West Indies.
Scheduling and Broadcasting Challenges
England’s first Test series in South Africa in seven years presents an attractive opportunity for cricket fans, with an 8am UK start time appealing to domestic audiences. However, the scheduling over the busy Christmas period poses challenges for broadcasters.
Sky Sports has made significant investments in rights for the Professional Darts Corporation (PDC) World Darts Championship, which costs £25 million annually. The tournament runs from 10 December to 2 January, overlapping with the South Africa series scheduled from 17 December to 7 January, particularly affecting afternoon sessions at Alexandra Palace.
Additionally, Sky has a substantial inventory of live Premier League and English Football League (EFL) football matches during Christmas, broadcasting more than 200 games this season. Consequently, the broadcaster is not actively seeking additional content.
Both Sky and TNT declined to comment on the situation.
