World Rugby
World Rugby eyes full unbundling of women’s rights but some joint deals ‘still make sense’
World Rugby is increasingly looking to unbundle commercial rights to the women’s game, following similar steps taken by Fifa and Uefa in recent years, but believes that bundled rights deals “still make sense” in certain markets.
France 2023 sets new audience records, linear TV still dominates
France 2023 was the most-watched Rugby World Cup of all time, governing body World Rugby declared today (Tuesday).
The tournament, won by South Africa, achieved 1
In Focus: Rugby World Cup
SportBusiness Media takes a deep dive into the numbers driving the commercial success of the Rugby World Cup.
As World Cup kicks off, revamped RugbyPass shows the way for rugby’s stakeholders
Revamped content formats and platforms are at the heart of World Rugby’s push to change the game’s image over the course of the tournament, and it hopes that RugbyPass TV, its revamped D2C OTT service, can play its part in the reconnection.
World Rugby lights up dark markets with global streaming platform launch
World Rugby has moved to plug gaps in the sport's global reach through the launch of free streaming platform RugbyPass TV in time for next month's Rugby World Cup
Starzplay follows beIN as RWC rights-holder in Mena
The forthcoming Rugby World Cup in France is to be streamed exclusively in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) by Starzplay, the subscription video-on-demand OTT service in the region
Sky NZ brings Stuff into 2023 RWC fold
Sky New Zealand has announced that 12 matches from the 2023 Rugby World Cup will be simulcast on news platform Stuff, with the pay-television operator appearing to favour the tie-up plus coverage on its…
Tributes paid to World Rugby head of broadcast Chris Synnott
Tributes have been received from across the sports industry for Chris Synnott, World Rugby’s head of broadcast and media rights, following his recent passing at the age of 51.
Heaselgrave leaves World Rugby after 18 months
Richard Heaselgrave has left his role as chief revenue and fan engagement officer at World Rugby just over 18 months after taking up the post, SportBusiness understands
L’Équipe acquires rights to Fifa and World Rugby U20 events
French media group L'Équipe has acquired rights to the this year's Fifa Under-20 World Cup and World Rugby Under-20 Championship in separate deals with football and rugby union’s world governing bodies.
RTÉ, Virgin Media team up again to land Rugby World Cup rights
Irish public-service broadcaster RTÉ and telecoms operator Virgin Media have acquired rights to this year’s men’s Rugby World Cup, which will take place in France.
Free-to-air and pay-TV mix retained in Japan’s Rugby World Cup TV deals
Broadcast rights to the Rugby World Cup have once again been split in Japan across free-to-air and pay television in deals for this year’s tournament with NHK, Nippon TV and J Sports.
FanCode bags World Rugby Sevens Series
Indian digital sports media platform FanCode has acquired exclusive streaming rights for the men's and women's 2023 World Rugby Sevens Series
BeIN sees off Premier challenge to retain Rugby World Cup in Southeast Asia
BeIN Sports fought off competition from rugby-focused Premier Sports Asia to renew its rights in Southeast Asia for the men’s Rugby World Cup in 2023.
RugbyPass offload saves Sky NZ cash in World Rugby rights acquisition
It is understood that World Rugby, aware that Sky NZ were determined to acquire the rights, initiated direct talks with the broadcaster without a tender.
Nine secures Rugby World Cup rights at slight decrease
Nine secured rights to the 2023 Men’s Rugby World Cup and the 2022 Women’s Rugby World Cup at a slight decrease, reflecting of the waning popularity of rugby union in the country.
World Rugby extends IMG Replay video archive deal
World Rugby has renewed an agreement with IMG for the agency to exclusively manage and license the video archive for its flagship competitions until 2024
World Rugby acquires RugbyPass as part of rights deal with Sky New Zealand
World Rugby has acquired the RugbyPass digital media platform as part of a seven-year media rights deal with pay-television broadcaster Sky New Zealand