The PWHL, in its fourth season of expansion, has inked a major deal with Scripps Sports for a season-long U.S. national broadcast. This move follows Scripps’ previous season broadcast of select regular-season games and the Walter Cup Finals playoff series. With this agreement, the PWHL will now reach over 128 million U.S. households through ION, Scripps’ national sports and entertainment network.
Under the deal, Scripps will produce and air a game every Saturday on ION, which is accessible through various platforms including over-the-air, connected TV, streaming services, and pay television. Additionally, the Scripps Sports Network will broadcast two national games weekly, available on popular streaming platforms like Roku, Prime Video, Fire TV, Google TV Freeplay, and Tubi.
As part of this collaboration, Scripps’ television affiliates in Detroit and Las Vegas will hold the local broadcast rights for the two new expansion teams within the league. Amy Scheer, the PWHL’s executive vice-president of business operations, expressed excitement over the league’s national television presence, emphasizing the growth it signifies.
While the PWHL is yet to release its schedule, the season is anticipated to kick off in late November. The league will also continue live streaming all games on its YouTube channel globally, except in Canada where it has existing broadcast partnerships, including CBC Sports.
The partnership between PWHL and Scripps was sparked during a meeting in Milan amid the Winter Games in February. This collaboration capitalizes on the momentum of women’s hockey following the U.S. team’s Olympic gold medal win. The PWHL, now with 12 teams, has expanded by adding four new teams, including those in San Jose, California, and Hamilton, Ontario, bringing the total to seven U.S. and five Canadian teams.
Scripps enhances its portfolio of women’s sports properties with existing broadcast agreements in place with the WNBA, NWSL, and the Women’s TMRW Golf League. Brian Lawlor, Scripps Sports president, highlighted ION as a premier platform for women’s sports, offering athletes a significant stage and fans the opportunity to engage with their favorite teams.
In addition to this deal, Scripps’ affiliates also hold broadcasting rights for various NHL teams, such as Florida and Las Vegas, the NBA’s Detroit Pistons, and the NCAA’s Big Sky Conference.