This winter’s World Darts Championship broke records, bringing Sky Sports an audience of nearly five million and peaking at 3.71 simultaneous viewers – the channel’s highest non-football number as of January 2024. The final, held in London, saw defending champion Luke Humphries go head-to-head with Luke Littler, ultimately defeating the 16-year-old in a 7-4 result. The championship final attracted over 4.8 million viewers, representing a 143% increase from the previous year. The event also saw increased engagement on socials, with 27.6 million video streams across Sky Sports channels and 2.44 million following its live blog. Besides darts, Sky Sports covers live broadcasts of the Premier League, Formula 1, cricket, rugby and golf, as well as boxing, mixed martial arts, American football, basketball and tennis. The channel has recently commissioned a three-part darts docu- series detailing these record-breaking figures. WORLD DARTS CHAMPIONSHIP BREAKS SKY SPORTS RECORDS DAZN UK MAKES WOMEN’S FOOTBALL FREE
Dazn UK has struck a New Deal – named after the 1967 tournament when the English FA broke its ban on women’s football – as part of its campaign to invest in the sport. In January, the streamer lifted its paywall from the sport, attempting to improve the match day experience, expand sponsorship opportunities and deliver broader distribution. Dazn, which broadcasted the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup, has made its coverage of the UWCL, WSL, Liga F, Frauen-Bundesliga and others free to UK viewers. “Women’s football is the most compelling
sport investment opportunity for a generation,” comments Hannah Brown, Dazn’s co-CEO of Women’s Sport. “When you put good content in front of an audience, they watch it. If you put a paywall in front of it, few make a direct pay choice.” She concludes: “To realise its potential, [we need] another moment of bravery just like that 1967 tournament.”
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