The Rugby Broadcast Report Issue 19: TV Guide and Rugby Media Rights Update
Never miss a game
Welcome to the Rugby Broadcast Report, a weekly newsletter covering the weekend’s televised rugby action and the latest developments in rugby media rights.
The autumn internationals are underway and the action continues this weekend with a number of highly anticipated fixtures.
After thumping USA last week, Scotland take on an All Blacks side featuring only one of the Barrett brothers on Saturday afternoon (KO: 3:10pm). Before that, Andy Farrell’s Irish side will be hoping to get back to winning ways against Eddie Jones’ Japan (KO: 12:40pm).
After making a strong start to their Quilter Nations Series (QNS) campaign, England take on Fiji at 5:40pm on Saturday, while at the same time Italy begin their QNS journey against a wounded Australian side.
In arguably the fixture of the weekend, France host South Africa on Saturday night (KO: 8:10pm) and on Sunday Wales will be hoping for their first home win in a competitive fixture since November 2022 when they take on Felipe Contepomi’s Argentina (KO: 3:10pm).
Across the weekend you can also watch Round 1 of the Final Qualification Tournament for the 2027 RWC, Ireland A and England A, Pro D2, Champ, Rugby Europe Trophy & Conference, Top 14, PWR, international friendlies and the 745 Game – in aid of raising funds and awareness for the fight against MND.
Irish and UK kick-off and broadcast details for all televised games are listed below.*
Fixture of the weekend (admittedly biased)
Quilter Nations Series: France v South Africa
Kick-off: Saturday, 8:10pm Irish & UK time
TV: TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
Venue: Stade de France, Paris
Verdict: South Africa by 3
Quote of the week
I worked on Premiership coverage for 7 years, when content celebrating legal big hits were taken off air because of “optics”. I was regularly told I was “irresponsible” for talking about enjoying legal, codified violence as a key ingredient in rugby’s sporting competition. I’ve never strayed from this opinion and never stopped saying it (as the podcast back catalogue will testify). Now some chief architects of the madness, who dragged English rugby through the mud, are positioning themselves as the solution, without a hint of self awareness.
These strong words from former BT Sport reporter Tim Cocker focus on PREM Rugby's concerted emphasis on physicality this season. As part of its efforts to celebrate the “big hits” and physicality, the PREM has been sharing various clips on social media, such as the example below.
Of course the context here is the incredibly sad news that has emerged over the past few years that numerous former players, such as Steve Thompson, are suffering from harrowing brain injuries and the legal action being taken against World Rugby and various unions. As such, it is understandable that there will be those that feel uncomfortable with the PREM’s approach.
On the other hand, physicality and athleticism are core parts of rugby’s appeal –reasons why so many people play and follow the sport. In addition, the game has made strides in raising awareness of concussion and has taken important steps to mitigate against brain injuries. Promoting that aspect of the game therefore makes sense. What are your thoughts?
The broadcast number
€47.8 million – the reported annual value of the broadcast deal for the URC from 2021-2024 after the South African sides joined the league.** The previous deal was worth an estimated €30.4 million per season according to two sources.*** New agreements were put in place this season but the value of each deal has not been revealed. Unlike the LNR, which released the value of the new Top 14 and Pro D2 TV deals to the public, the URC and PREM Rugby do not release such figures.
Lions documentary film
This is nothing like the seminal Living with Lions documentary from the 1997 tour of South Africa.
Some of the reviews are in for the new Lions documentary, the above quote is from Alan Tyers’ review in The Telegraph. What are your thoughts on Lions Uncut: Australia 2025?
Rugby media rights news
PREM Rugby has entered a partnership with production company Whisper to deliver “a new, bold, and authentic athlete-led content strategy.” The partnership is part of PREM Rugby’s efforts to grow the league, particularly among younger audiences. In a press release PREM Rugby revealed that in the first month of the season social engagement has risen by 38%, overall reach has grown by 63% and social media “shares” by 419%. Whisper has worked in partnership with 53Six to create YouTube content, leading to the PREM’s YouTube channel breaking its “most views in a single day” three times since this partnership began.
RugbyPass has launched a new documentary series Tests of Time, covering some of the greatest matches of all time. Episode one was released recently and focuses on Ireland’s loss to meet New Zealand at the 2023 RWC, link below.
The URC has finalised the Round 8 South African derbies, while the cancelled Round 2 fixtures will be rearranged in due course.
Saturday, 21 February – Lions v Sharks – KO: 12:00 IRL & UK / 13:00 ITA / 14:00 SA. Live on: SuperSport, Premier Sports, URC.tv and FloRugby.
Saturday, 14 March – Bulls v Stormers – KO: 12:00 IRL & UK / 13:00 ITA / 14:00 SA. Live on: SuperSport, Premier Sports, URC.tv and FloRugby.
As noted in a City AM article recently, this is the final year of the Nations Series (Quilter) as we know it, with the new World Rugby “Nations Championship” due to start in 2026. However, many of the details have yet to be announced and there is still no confirmed broadcaster in place, although The Telegraph has reported that TNT Sports are in talks with tournament organisers.
MLR is down to just six teams after the news broke this week that Utah Warriors have suspended operations. The 2026 iteration of the league will only feature one of the league’s founding teams, the Seattle Seawolves. Where does the league go from here and where does this leave its broadcast deal with Premier Sports?
Sky Sports’ British & Irish Lions Tour 2025 coverage and the HBS’ production of the Women’s RWC 2025 have both been nominated for Sports Production of the Year by Broadcast Sport. The winner will be revealed on 13 November 2025.
TNT Sports has revealed its plans for Quilter Nations Series, which includes broadcasting every QNS match live, live in-play pitch-side analysis, POV drones, the use of Spidercam, the use of augmented reality and a new weekly show, The Quilter Nations Series Show.
According to a recent report by the Women’s Sport Trust, total viewing hours for women’s sport reached record highs from January to September 2025 in the UK. Female audiences have also reached record levels – the broadcast audience for the 2025 Women’s RWC was 43% female, which was the highest on record. The report also highlights that males still account for the majority of viewers of women’s sport. According to the report linear audiences skewed older for women’s tournaments compared to the men’s equivalents: 70% of the viewers of the 2025 Women’s RWC were aged 55 and older, compared with 55% for the 2023 Men’s RWC. Unsurprisingly streaming is attracting younger audiences: 10.5 million streams for the RWC across BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport platforms came from viewers aged 16-35. The report also found that male viewers still make up the majority of women’s sport audiences and dominated viewing for the 2025 Women’s RWC.
ProSieben Maxx, the Munich-based free-to-air broadcaster, has acquired the broadcast rights for the 2027 Rugby World Cup for the third time. Together with the streaming platform Joyn, all 52 matches of the tournament will be broadcast live and exclusively in Germany.
Here’s your full TV guide for this weekend’s action:
Thursday 6 November
8:00pm – Grenoble v Béziers (Pro D2) – YouTube
Friday 7 November
7:30pm – Doncaster v Chinnor (Champ) – Clubber TV
7:45pm – London Scottish v Bedford Blues (Champ) – Clubber TV
7:45pm – Nottingham v Cornish Pirates (Champ) – Clubber TV
Saturday 8 November
8:30am – Hong Kong v Brumbies (Friendly) – RugbyPass TV
12:00pm – Georgia v USA (International) – Premier Sports Online / RugbyPass TV
12:40pm – Ireland v Japan (Quilter Nations Series) – RTÉ 2 & Player / TNT Sports 3 / discovery+ / NOW
1:00pm – Slovakia v Austria (Rugby Europe Conference) – Rugby Europe TV
1:00pm – Croatia v Czechia (Rugby Europe Trophy) – Rugby Europe TV
1:00pm – Samoa v Brazil (RWC 2027 Qualifier) – RugbyPass TV
1:15pm – England A v New Zealand XV (International) – Premier Sports 1 & Online / Unavailable live in Ireland
2:00pm – Ampthill v Ealing Trailfinders (Champ) – Clubber TV
2:00pm – Caldy v Worcester Warriors (Champ) – Clubber TV
2:00pm – Cambridge v Richmond (Champ) – Clubber TV
2:30pm – Hartpury v Coventry (Champ) – Clubber TV
3:00pm – Poland v Denmark (Rugby Europe Trophy) – Rugby Europe TV
3:00pm – Romania v Canada (International) – RugbyPass TV
3:00pm – Portugal v Uruguay (International) – RugbyPass TV
3:00pm – Sale Sharks Women v Trailfinders Women (PWR) – BBC iPlayer / Unavailable live in Ireland
3:10pm – Scotland v New Zealand (Quilter Nations Series) – TNT Sports 1 & 3 / discovery+ / NOW
3:30pm – Belgium v Namibia (RWC 2027 Qualifier) – RugbyPass TV
3:30pm – Toulon v La Rochelle (Top 14) – Premier Sports 2 & Online / NOW
4:00pm – Spain v Ireland A (International) – RugbyPass TV
4:00pm – Andorra v Israel (Rugby Europe Conference) – Rugby Europe TV
5:40pm – England v Fiji (Quilter Nations Series) – TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
5:40pm – Italy v Australia (Quilter Nations Series) – TNT Sports 3 / discovery+ / NOW
8:10pm – France v South Africa (Quilter Nations Series) – TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
Sunday 9 November
12:30pm – Harlequins Women v Gloucester-Hartpury Women (PWR) – TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
2:30pm – Bristol Bears Women v Saracens Women (PWR) – YouTube
2:30pm – Loughborough Lightning v Exeter Chiefs Women (PWR) – YouTube
3:10pm – Wales v Argentina (International) – S4C / BBC iPlayer / TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
5:40pm – The 745 Game – TNT Sports 1 / discovery+ / NOW
Useful links
YouTube (Pro D2)
YouTube (URC – UK only)
Clubber TV (Champ)
YouTube (PWR)
YouTube (Super Rugby Cymru)
Rugby Europe TV (Conference, Trophy & Super Cup)
YouTube (RugbyPass 24/7 channel)
Final thoughts
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*TV guide subject to change. The website version of this newsletter will be updated if required.
**Oliver & Ohlbaum
***SportsPro and Oliver & Ohlbaum