The 2026 Rugby League World Cup is at the heart of a bidding war for broadcast rights between four networks all interested in showcasing the international competition.
Australia’s the Daily Telegraph is reporting that the NRL has started discussions for a multi-billion-dollar new broadcast deal and it seems that the World Cup is a hot property in a deal that could be worth $20 million.
That World Cup deal has seen the Australian Rugby League Commission, negotiating on behalf of International Rugby League, reach out to broadcasters and reportedly Australia’s Channel 7 and Channel 9 have thrown their hat in the ring along with DAZN and Amazon Prime in a deal that could mean huge things for rugby league broadcasting both in the southern and northern hemispheres.
Both Channels 7 and 9 offer free-to-air access in Australia, with Channel 9 the current home of NRL in the country. Channel 7 has not featured rugby league since the 2017 World Cup.
Neither DAZN nor Amazon Prime have ever featured rugby league on their streaming platforms so coverage of the Rugby League World Cup would be a debut for both.
DAZN specialises in sports coverage in over 200 countries worldwide, showcasing football, boxing and tennis, and has deals to show their coverage via Eurosport and beIN Sports too.
Amazon Prime has hosted sport on their platform since 2017 including UEFA Champions League games, the Premier League and tennis’ French Open.
Rugby League World Cup broadcast negotiations held with possible $20 million deal
Given the ARLC are negotiating on behalf of the IRL, it’s unclear how British coverage of the World Cup would be affected with the BBC and the RFL’s own streaming platform Our League having aired international games in recent years, however, a deal with a streaming platform such as DAZN and Amazon Prime could cross continents.
With such a deal up for grabs and potential NRL involvement in Super League, it could mean significant investment and improvement for Super League’s next broadcast rights deal.
Currently, Sky Sports shows all games, most via their new Sky Sports+ app, and Super League have their own streaming service.
However, the broadcast deals have devalued over recent years meaning less cash distributed across the Super League clubs.
There are minimal games shown on free-to-air channels, with the BBC showing only a handful of Super League games alongside their Challenge Cup coverage.
With all three Ashes tests live on primetime BBC in October and November, Super League will be hoping that those viewing figures will spur on an improved broadcast deal for the league.
Considering two of the three Tests are now sold out, it’s hoped that the return of England v Australia should bring in massive viewing figures on three consecutive Saturday afternoons.
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