Women’s soccer has always struggled to attract the kind of TV deals and sponsorship deals that their male counterparts have succeeded in amassing over the years. Television deals are the driving component of global soccer business models. So it’s almost inconceivable that any league in the world would forego this source of revenue.
But that’s what the women’s soccer league in Sweden will be doing this year. The Elite Football Women, the body that controls the Damallsvenskan in Sweden, just launched an online “over-the-top subscription platform”, collaborating with Spring Media to make all 132 matches of the top league more accessible to the fans.
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From 2011 to 2015 TV4, a Swedish commercial broadcaster, held all the rights for the league. That will change this April, when FC Rosengard take on Kristianstads DFF, as the game will be available on Spring Media on demand.
It remains to be seen whether this new deal will bring in the desired revenue, which will ultimately be the program’s measure of success. Each of the twelve teams used to receive $98,150 from the TV4 deal.
However, EFD and Spring Media believe that they will be able to replicate these numbers. Their previous foray into streaming games boasted impressive figures. They are also hopeful that the growing interest in the Swedish women’s national team will translate into higher interest in the women’s league. Furthermore, several world-class players make their trade in the Swedish league, therefore, making the games available online for international viewing will also help in raising revenues.
Don’t miss the match between @DIFDam and @FCRosengard tonight 19.00 local time at https://t.co/XGe0gKFAED pic.twitter.com/FmGK0Fg2FW
— Damallsvenskan (@_Damallsv) April 20, 2016
Spring Media founding partner Torsten Billing recently remarked, “We see it [the international availability] as an important aspect considering that the Swedish league is one of the top leagues in the world. Many of the most famous players play in the Swedish league and the clubs do well in the Champions league. By offering a digital platform it can open up the international market as well.”
The details of the platform make for an interesting read. According to Sportcal who broke the news on the digital deal:
- All matches will be produced in high definition
- Replays and Swedish commentary will be made available
- Highlights, goals, and interviews from 2015 will also be made available.
- There will be a free trial period until May 5th
- Customers will pay $10.92 for pay per view access to games or $20.92 a month
Linda Wijkstrom, the EFD’s general secretary commenting on the new deal said: “Damallsvenskan is one of the most popular leagues in Sweden in terms of audience figures and media exposure. By launching Damllsvenskan.tv we want to further increase Damallsvenskan reach and availability.”
Here’s hoping that this will be the beginning of a shift towards a fairer system that will allow fans of soccer, men and women’s, greater access to games on any platform.