WSL brings back Sunday evening kick-offs after indifferent viewing figures
Quick summary
The Women's Super League will reintroduce Sunday evening kick-off times after previously shifting fixtures, responding to disappointing TV viewing figures.
Full article
Attributed to original sourceMove part of an overhaul of its broadcast strategy
Sunday evening games were dropped last season
The Women’s Super League will bring back Sunday evening kick-offs this season as part of an overhaul of its broadcast strategy after indifferent viewing figures last season.
The Guardian has learned that the WSL will offer six different TV slots to broadcasters after releasing its fixtures for the 2026-27 campaign later on Thursday in a significant change from last season, when the majority of televised games took place on Saturday and Sunday lunchtimes.
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What happened
The Women's Super League has decided to bring back Sunday evening kick-off times after viewing figures for the alternative schedule proved underwhelming. The league had moved away from the traditional Sunday evening slot, but the experiment failed to deliver the expected audience improvements. The decision reflects the WSL's ongoing efforts to optimise its broadcast product and grow viewership as the competition continues to develop commercially.
Chance analysis
Sunday evening kick-offs have historically been a strong slot for English football broadcasting, and the WSL's reversal suggests the initial scheduling experiment did not achieve its audience goals. For clubs, returning to a familiar and high-traffic broadcast window could modestly improve visibility, sponsor value, and fan engagement. However, the underlying challenge of growing WSL viewing figures remains a structural issue tied to marketing, star power, and competing sports programming rather than kick-off time alone.
The WSL as a whole may benefit from improved TV audience reach by returning to Sunday evening kick-offs, though the effect on any single club or match is indirect.
WSL matches may return to higher-visibility Sunday evening slots, but this does not directly alter any upcoming match prediction inputs.