Groupe M6 secures exclusive FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 broadcasting rights
French broadcaster strengthens women's sport commitment with multi-tournament deal.
Groupe M6 has announced the acquisition of exclusive broadcasting rights for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 in France, extending the company's established partnership with women's football. The announcement, made by RTL Group SA, reinforces the broadcaster's position as the official French destination for the next three FIFA World Cups across both men's and women's competitions.
The tournament will take place in Brazil from 24 June to 25 July 2027, featuring 24 teams competing for the title. French audiences will access comprehensive coverage through Groupe M6's family of channels as the national team, known as "Les Bleues," pursues the prestigious championship among 23 competing nations.
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Summary
Who: Groupe M6, the French broadcasting division of RTL Group SA, has secured exclusive broadcasting rights. David Larramendy, Chairman of the Executive Board of Groupe M6, represents the company in this agreement with FIFA.
What: Exclusive broadcasting rights for the FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 in France, covering comprehensive tournament coverage through Groupe M6's family of channels. The agreement continues a decade-long partnership between Groupe M6 and French women's football.
When: The FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 will take place from 24 June to 25 July 2027. RTL Group announced the broadcasting rights acquisition in 2025, providing substantial advance planning time for production and commercial preparations.
Where: The tournament will be held in Brazil, with Groupe M6 providing exclusive coverage to French audiences. RTL Group operates across multiple European countries through 60 television channels, seven streaming services, and 37 radio stations.
Why: This acquisition strengthens Groupe M6's commitment to women's sport development and establishes the broadcaster as the official French destination for three consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments. The strategic investment reflects growing commercial value in women's sports programming and maintains competitive positioning in the evolving sports media landscape.
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According to RTL Group, this agreement continues a partnership spanning over a decade between Groupe M6 and French women's football. The broadcaster previously delivered coverage of the UEFA Women's Euro 2013, FIFA Women's World Cup events in 2015 and 2023, alongside qualifying matches and friendly games since 2018. This extensive history demonstrates consistent investment in women's sport programming across multiple tournament cycles.
"We are very proud to continue our partnership with FIFA around these prestigious competitions," said David Larramendy, Chairman of the Executive Board of Groupe M6. "This agreement is fully in line with Groupe M6's long-standing commitment to the development of women's sport on our channels."
The acquisition forms part of a comprehensive FIFA broadcasting strategy for Groupe M6. According to RTL Group documentation, the company has secured rights to broadcast both the FIFA Men's World Cup 2026 in the United States, Canada and Mexico, and the FIFA Men's World Cup 2030 in Spain, Portugal and Morocco. This positioning establishes Groupe M6 as the official French broadcaster for three consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments spanning both men's and women's competitions.
For the marketing and advertising sector, this deal represents significant implications within the evolving sports media landscape. Sports broadcasting rights acquisitions create substantial advertising inventory opportunities, particularly during major international tournaments that historically generate premium audience engagement rates. The 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup demonstrated unprecedented global viewership figures, establishing women's football as an increasingly valuable advertising platform.
RTL Group operates as Europe's leading entertainment company across broadcast, streaming, content and digital platforms, maintaining interests in 60 television channels, seven streaming services and 37 radio stations. The Group's television channel families hold either number one or number two market positions in six European countries, while RTL Group owns or maintains interests in radio stations across France, Germany, Spain and Luxembourg.
The company's streaming portfolio includes RTL+ in Germany and Hungary, Videoland in the Netherlands, and M6+ in France. RTL Deutschland functions as the Group's largest business unit and Germany's first cross-media champion, operating comprehensive services across television, streaming, radio, digital and publishing sectors. Additionally, RTL Group owns Fremantle, one of the world's largest creators, producers and distributors of scripted and unscripted content, responsible for more than 11,000 hours of programming annually alongside an international network operating in 27 countries.
The broadcasting rights market has experienced significant transformation as streaming platforms increasingly compete with traditional broadcasters for premium sports content. Amazon Prime Video's recent acquisition of NBA and WNBA rights demonstrates how digital platforms are reshaping sports media economics, creating new paradigms for audience reach and advertising monetization strategies.
RTL Group's strategic positioning across multiple media formats provides advertisers with integrated campaign opportunities spanning traditional television, streaming platforms, radio stations and digital properties. This comprehensive ecosystem enables cross-platform advertising strategies that maximize audience reach during major sporting events like FIFA World Cup tournaments.
The streaming technology company Bedrock, advertising technology company Smartclip, and social media company We Are Era operate under RTL Group ownership, creating additional technical infrastructure for sophisticated advertising campaign management. As a market leader, RTL Group maintains strategic alliances and partnerships within the European media industry, including building comprehensive advertising sales operations in Germany with Ad Alliance and driving international advertising sales through RTL AdAlliance.
Bertelsmann serves as the majority shareholder of RTL Group, which maintains listings on both Luxembourg and Frankfurt stock exchanges and inclusion in the MDAX stock index. This corporate structure provides financial stability for long-term content investments like major sports broadcasting rights acquisitions.
The FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 represents the ninth edition of the tournament, which has experienced substantial growth in global audience participation and commercial value since its inaugural competition in 1991. Tournament expansion to 24 teams reflects FIFA's commitment to developing women's football internationally, creating increased content volume for broadcasters and extended advertising opportunities throughout the competition format.
Women's sports programming has demonstrated strong audience loyalty and engagement metrics, particularly valuable for advertisers targeting specific demographic segments. The combination of national team support and international competition creates compelling viewing experiences that generate sustained audience attention across multi-week tournament periods.
For digital marketing professionals, sports broadcasting rights represent complex advertising ecosystem developments. Premium content acquisitions drive sophisticated targeting capabilities and measurement opportunities that extend beyond traditional television advertising models. Modern sports broadcasting encompasses streaming delivery, social media integration, and multi-platform content distribution strategies that require comprehensive advertising campaign coordination.
The FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 broadcasting rights acquisition demonstrates how established media companies maintain competitive positioning against streaming platform expansion through strategic content investments. Traditional broadcasters leverage existing audience relationships and integrated media portfolios to defend market share while adapting to changing consumption patterns and advertising technology requirements.
RTL Group's commitment to women's sport programming reflects broader industry recognition of growing commercial viability in previously undervalued content categories. This strategic approach creates sustainable competitive advantages through consistent audience development and advertiser relationships built around reliable content programming schedules.
The announcement timing provides RTL Group with substantial advance notice for advertising sales planning and campaign development initiatives. Two years of preparation enables comprehensive marketing strategy development, technical production planning, and commercial partnership negotiations that maximize tournament monetization potential across all available distribution channels.
Timeline
- Over a decade ago: Groupe M6 begins partnership with "Les Bleues" women's national football team
- 2013: Groupe M6 broadcasts UEFA Women's Euro
- 2015: First FIFA Women's World Cup coverage by Groupe M6
- 2018: Ongoing broadcast coverage of qualifying games and friendly matches begins
- 2023: FIFA Women's World Cup broadcast coverage
- 2024: Sports streaming rights market experiences significant transformation
- 2025: RTL Group announces FIFA Women's World Cup 2027 exclusive broadcasting rights for France
- 2026: FIFA Men's World Cup in US, Canada and Mexico (Groupe M6 broadcasting)
- 2027: FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil (24 June - 25 July)
- 2030: FIFA Men's World Cup in Spain, Portugal and Morocco (Groupe M6 broadcasting)