Photo credit: Amy Kontras | Imagn Images
The National Women’s Soccer League announced a mid-cycle media rights expansion which builds upon pre-existing partnerships with CBS Sports and ESPN, while adding a new agreement with free streaming platform Victory+.
The changes will come at the two-year mark of the league’s $240 million four-year media rights deal with CBS, ESPN, Prime Video, and Scripps Sports, which was announced in November 2023. Per a league press release, that package multiplied audiences in its first year by a factor of four.
CBS Sports Network will add 17 matches next year, while ESPN and ABC networks will be adding 16. Victory+ will show 57 games, including 25 Sunday primetime broadcasts. ESPN and ABC platforms will host a “Match of the Week” series, as well as all eight Decision Day games.
With two expansion teams — Denver Summit FC and Boston Legacy FC — joining the league next season, there will be 240 total matches in 2026 and 2027, as opposed to the 182 game schedule in 2024 and 2025.
In July 2024, the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey league launched Victory+ with A Parent Media Co. as an advertisement-funded local streaming service. Since then, Victory+ has expanded its sport offerings with matches from multiple competitions. The service can be accessed through Roku, Amazon FireTV, Apple TV, and other platforms.
“We believe that by making these games free to fans, we can help build the next generation of fandom and continue the league’s amazing growth,” Katie Boes, Head of Content Partnerships at Victory+ said in a statement.
In a press release, ESPN cited Nielsen Big Data + Panel in noting, “In 2025 to date, the NWSL audience across ABC, ESPN, and ESPN2 grew by 72 percent compared to 2024, the first year of agreement.”
In total, for the 2026 and 2027 seasons, CBS networks will show 38 games, ESPN networks will show 36, Prime Video will show 27, Scripps Sports (ION) will show 50, Victory+ will show 57, and NWSL+ will show 40. CBS Sports will show the NWSL Championship.
