Sky Sports will make key matches from the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 available free-to-air and without subscription, as part of a wider push to grow audiences for women’s cricket.
The broadcaster said the opening matches for each of the home nations, along with the final, will be shown free-to-air on Sky Mix. The tournament opener between England and Sri Lanka at Edgbaston will also be carried on YouTube.
In addition, all 12 home nations group matches, plus the semi-finals and final, will be available to watch without a subscription through the Sky Sports app.
The move means viewers will be able to watch England v Sri Lanka, Scotland v Ireland and the final at Lord’s on free-to-air television, while still giving Sky Sports and NOW subscribers access to every match live across the tournament.
Jonathan Licht, Sky’s chief sports officer for the UK and Ireland, said the broadcaster sees the summer as a potential defining moment for women’s cricket and wants to use broader distribution to reach new audiences and build fandom.
ICC chief executive Sanjog Gupta said the expanded access fits with the governing body’s strategy of widening availability across screens and using major events to recruit new fans to women’s cricket.
Tournament director Beth Barrett-Wild said the coverage plan would help more viewers experience what is expected to be a landmark competition across venues in England and Wales.
The tournament starts on June 12 and runs through to the final at Lord’s on July 5. It forms part of a wider summer of women’s cricket on Sky, which will also include England’s women’s Test against India at Lord’s and the return of The Hundred.
Sky said the Women’s Cricket World Cup 2025 delivered a record 20 million viewer hours on its platforms, making it the biggest women’s sports event on Sky last year.
