DAZN, the international sports streaming service, pay-TV heavyweight Sky Italia have renewed their deal to show European volleyball’s top-tier CEV Champions League club competition in Italy for three more seasons.
The agreement includes both the men’s and women’s editions and will cover the 2026-27, 2027-28, and 2028-29 seasons.
The deal was brokered by major sports marketing agency Infront, the CEV's exclusive media rights distribution partner and service provider.
DAZN and Sky have shared rights to the CEV Champions League since the 2024-25 season under a two-year agreement that was due to expire at the end of this campaign.
Sky shows three games from each round of the men’s and women’s competitions, equating to over 50 fixtures in total, while DAZN (which was the sole Italian broadcaster for those two competitions in the 2023-24 season) shows all matches featuring Italian sides, as well as select other fixtures.
For the 2021-22 and 2022-23 CEV Champions League campaigns, Italian coverage was provided by Discovery+ and Eurosport.
In addition, DAZN has also acquired rights to the next two editions of the men's and women's European Championships national teams tournaments, scheduled for 2026 and 2028.
Italy is one of four hosts for the 2026 Men's European Volleyball Championship, alongside Bulgaria, Finland, and Romania. The tournament will take place from September 9 to 26.
This year's women's edition will be held in Azerbaijan, the Czech Republic, Sweden, and Turkey from August 21 to September 6.
The full rights package for DAZN includes coverage of Italian men's and women's team matches, as well as the best matches of the Champions League and European Championships.
The coverage until 2029 also includes the top matches of the CEV Cup and Challenge Cup, as well as beach volleyball through the European Championships and the Beach Volleyball Nations Cup.
Stefano Azzi, CEO of DAZN Italy, said: “European volleyball has been on DAZN since 2018. As a broadcaster, we have invested over the years to enhance this right, which is a flagship of our multi-sport offering.
“We are proud to have become a point of reference for Italian and international volleyball fans, and these renewals confirm our long-term commitment.”
Volleyball is a popular sport in Italy and was boosted by the women’s national team’s gold medal success at the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Umbria Volley Perugia also won the 2024-25 CEV Champions League.
DAZN’s volleyball portfolio in Italy includes domestic Serie A league action, as well as the Volleyball Nations League and Club World Cup.
The Infront-CEV media rights tie-up, unveiled in late 2019, runs until the end of the 2031-32 season and has been reported as worth $117 million overall.
