TNT Sports seals four-year deal to screen FA Cup matches
The signing of the deal between the Football Association (FA) and TNT Sports will allow more games to be screened than ever before, across both TNT Sports and free-to-air formats, of the world’s oldest national football competition.
The new partnership between the FA and Warner Bros. Discovery, which operates TNT Sports, will ensure the world’s longest-running national knockout football competition continues to be as broadly available as possible across the UK.
TNT Sports will showcase live matches from the first round, when teams from League 1 and League enter the competition, plus every game from the third round outside of 3pm kick-offs on display through to the final at Wembley Stadium.
Selected matches free-to-air
Selected matches from every round will be available free-to-air and highlights of every game will be made available. Further details of the free-to-air broadcaster will be confirmed in due course.
In addition to the Emirates FA Cup ties, TNT Sports will also broadcast the English football season’s traditional curtain raiser, The FA Community Shield, and The FA Youth Cup semi-finals and final.
TNT Sports’ channels are available on EE TV, Sky and Virgin Media, as well as on its streaming platform discovery+.
TNT Sports business director of commercial customers Alasdair Collis said: "TNT Sports is proud to partner with the FA to present more matches of the world’s most prestigious domestic cup competition than ever before alongside our great line up of the Premier League and UEFA Champions League and club competitions.
“We know there is nothing like live football for bringing customers into pubs and clubs and the Emirates FA Cup enables us to tell the stories that matter most to the fans up and down the country."
Crown jewel
FA chief executive Mark Bullingham said: "The Emirates FA Cup is our crown jewel and it helps us to provide vital investment across every level of English football, supporting clubs, communities, facilities and the wider grassroots game.”
He continued: "TNT Sports are an outstanding broadcaster with an impressive record of showing some of the biggest and best sporting events around the world, so we are delighted to be working with them on our shared commitment and long-term vision that will ensure the Emirates FA Cup continues to thrive over the coming years."
Warner Bros. Discovery UK & Ireland and WBD Sports Europe president & managing director Andrew Georgiou added: "TNT Sports is proud to partner with the FA to present more matches of the world’s most prestigious domestic cup competition than ever before alongside our great line up of the Premier League and UEFA Champions League and club competitions, bringing even more live football to our TNT Sports customers.
“We have a huge amount of respect for the place that this world-famous competition has in the hearts of football fans and that’s why continuing to ensure we maintain a level of free-to-air coverage is important for us and the FA."
