Pay-TV giant Sky New Zealand will continue to provide coverage of English soccer’s top-tier Premier League (EPL) across the country through the 2033-34 season after securing an early extension to its rights agreement.
The new deal builds on Sky NZ’s current six-year rights agreement with England’s top flight, running from 2022-23 to 2027-28, and will see the broadcaster continue to air all 380 matches per campaign across its main sports channels and via the Sky Sport Now streaming platform.
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Paul Molnar, chief media officer of the EPL, said: “Sky has been a trusted and valued partner of the Premier League for many years, consistently delivering high-quality coverage to supporters across the country.
“New Zealand is important for the Premier League, with so many passionate and engaged fans of our competition. This long-term agreement reflects the strength of that fanbase and our relationship with Sky.”
Sky NZ reclaimed EPL rights ahead of the 2022-23 season, replacing sports streaming service Spark Sport, which held the rights under a three-year deal from 2019-20 to 2021-22.
The Premier League deal was telecoms operator Spark’s most significant rights contract after launching a sports platform in the country in 2019.
Before Spark, rights to the English top-flight in New Zealand were held by BeIN Sports, the international pay-TV operator, which turned to Sky to provide a platform for the matches in a sub-licensing agreement.
Sky NZ chief executive Sophie Moloney said: “We know how much the Premier League means to football fans, so we are delighted to renew our agreement for another six seasons.
"The Premier League is one of the world’s most recognized sporting competitions, bringing fans a season-long schedule of live matches, comprehensive highlights packages and compelling rivalries that captivate audiences around the world.
“With 20 clubs competing across 380 matches each season, this deal further strengthens Sky's unrivalled sports offering and our ability to deliver ongoing value for audiences."
The early renewal comes as Sky looks to consolidate its sports portfolio with a spate of long-term deals, recently securing rights to show 130 fixtures of Australia’s NRL top-tier rugby league competition through 2034 and striking an agreement to air all home international fixtures played by the England men’s and women’s cricket teams, as well as English domestic cricket, through 2030.
The cricket rights add to the broadcaster’s existing coverage of cricket as New Zealand Cricket’s domestic rights partner through 2031-32, while deals are also in place with the International Cricket Council (ICC) and for cricket in India and Australia.
