Cricket World Cup 2023

Ofcom has given its consent to a request from Sky to broadcast exclusive live coverage of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 (‘Cricket World Cup’).

The Cricket World Cup is taking place between 5 October and 19 November 2023. Sky intends to broadcast live coverage of all matches in the Cricket World Cup on its Sky Sports channels. Channel 5 Broadcasting Limited has acquired secondary coverage rights and intends to show daily highlights of the tournament, and live coverage of the Final, on Channel 5. Channel 5 will also make its daily highlights programme available on My5, its on-demand service, shortly after broadcast. The BBC has acquired radio rights to cover the tournament and intends to broadcast live radio coverage on a station with national coverage.

The “Final, Semi-Finals and Matches involving Home Nations’ Teams” played as part of the Cricket World Cup are Group B listed events for the purposes of the Broadcasting Act 1996 (“the Act”). Ofcom's consent is needed to broadcast exclusive live television coverage of listed events under section 101 of the Act.

However, where a second broadcaster providing a service in the other category to the service(s) on which the exclusive live coverage is to be broadcast provides adequate secondary coverage of a Group B listed event, and rights to provide live national radio coverage have also been acquired, then Ofcom can grant ‘automatic’ consent to broadcast, without consultation. See paragraphs 1.18 to 1.21 of Ofcom’s Code on Sports and Other Listed and Designated Events which set out more information about what constitutes adequate secondary coverage. In this case, Sky’s Sky Sports channels are “non-qualifying services” for the purposes of the Act, while Channel 5 is a “qualifying service”.

Having considered the information supplied by Sky, and supplementary information provided by Channel 5 and the BBC, Ofcom is satisfied that adequate provision has been made for secondary and radio coverage as set out above and has decided to grant automatic consent to Sky’s request.