EFL extends beIN Sports broadcast rights to 2027/28

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The English Football League (EFL) has extended its broadcast rights agreement with pay-tv provider beIN Sports for an additional four years, offering more games for international fans in 27 territories.

This renewal, which runs through the end of the 2027/28 season, includes the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, as well as France, Australia, and New Zealand.

Under the agreement, the Qatari-based network will broadcast more than 300 fixtures each season.

It will be split across 155 EFL Championship matches, 38 League One and League Two games each, and, for the first time ever, all 93 Carabao Cup fixtures.

In Australia, beIN Sports first held full EFL rights in 2015 and will continue well past the 10 year mark as fans of the other leagues now only require a beIN Connect subscription to view every game at $14.99/month.

The extension was negotiated by Pitch International, which manages the EFL’s media rights across Europe, MENA and Asia-Pacific.

Pitch International has successfully negotiated record US and domestic deals that allow every EFL game to be viewed via a legal stream, excluding the 3pm Saturday kick-offs in England (due to the enforced TV blackout).

Mohammad Al-Subaie, CEO of beIN MENA spoke about the great relationship the broadcaster have with the EFL.

“In addition to being the oldest football league in the world, the EFL is also one of the most competitive football ecosystems globally,” Al-Subaie said in a beIN Group media release.

“BeIN is proud to see its relationship with the EFL extended until the end of the 2027-28 season, by which time we will have been together for more than 18 years.

“We look forward to four more years of drama and tension, talent and determination, and are delighted to continue to provide our subscribers access to the finest moments and greatest matches from every corner of English football.”

This is great news for EFL fans in Australia, who can continue watching their favourite teams without needing to switch providers. With beIN Sports also offering coverage of Serie A, Ligue 1 & 2, and La Liga, fans can enjoy a comprehensive football experience with a single subscription.

The EFL has identified the Asia-Pacific region as a key market for future expansion, and securing extended broadcast rights in this area is an important first step toward reaching that goal.

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Victory unites with Roasting Warehouse in culture-led partnership

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Image credit: Melbourne Victory

The Melbourne-based anf family-owned business will join the Victory family, uniting two institutions which represent the city’s culture and identity.

A partnership with local roots

As the newest partner of Melbourne Victory, Roasting Warehouse joins forces with a vital part of the city’s sporting landscape.

The club’s Managing Director, Caroline Carnegie, outlined why the partnership bears so much value to both parties.

“We are excited to collaborate with Roasting Warehouse, a community-oriented destination for high-quality coffee, proud of its foundations in Melbourne,” said Carnegie via official media release.

“Football and coffee sit at the epicentre of Melbourne’s culture. The two go hand-in-hand, consistently at the centre of the conversation that stirs Melburnians, which is no different to the conversation sport and Melbourne Victory stir in the State.”

Indeed, this is a partnership which combines the identity, passions and culture of an entire city, therefore giving it the foundations required for long-term, mutual success.

Representing the best of Melbourne

Both Victory and Roasting Warehouse are hugely successful in their respective industries. They are institutions with community-oriented philosphies, who pride themselves on craft and quality.

“We’re incredibly proud to partner with Melbourne Victory, a club that represents the heart, passion, and ambition of Melbourne,” revealed Roasting Warehouse Head of Brand, Alexander Paraskevopoulos.

“As a Melbourne-founded, family-run business, supporting a team that means so much to the local community feels very natural for us.”

Furthermore, through their high-quality blends, Roasting Warehouse will look to prepare Victory’s players and staff for high performances on the pitch as the seasons nears completion.

But this is about far more than just fueling athletes.

This is a partnership which embodies and unites two of Melbourne’s greatest strengths and cultural markers – a connection forged from the city’s very own DNA.

 

For more information about Roasting Warehouse, click here.

Marie-Louise Eta makes history as new Union Berlin head coach

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Image credit: FC Union Berlin

In an historic appointment, Eta will take over as head coach of Union Berlin until the end of the season.

History in the making

Previously the first female assistant coach in Bundesliga history with Union Berlin, Eta will now take the reigns of the men’s first team on an interim basis.

Currently, the club sit in 11th place in the Bundesliga table, but with only two wins so far in 2026, relegation appears an all-too-real prospect, and one which the club is desperate to avoid.

“Given the points gap in the lower half of the table, our place in the Bundesliga is not yet secure,” said Eta via official media release.

‘I am delighted that the club has entrusted me with this challenging task. One of Union’s strengths has always been, and remains, the ability to pull together in such situations.”

Eta will begin as Union’s new head coach with immediate effect, and will be in the dugout for the club’s matchup against Wolfsburg this weekend.

 

A step into an equal future

Eta’s appointment signals a major step towards a more level playing field in the football landscape.

Furthermore, Eta joins other coaches including Sabrinna Wittmann, Hannah Dingley and Corinne Diacre who, in recent years, have blazed a trail for female coaches to step into the men’s game.

Wittmann currently manages FC Ingolstadt in Germany’s third division, and was the first female head coach in Germany’s top three divisions.

In 2023, Dingley became caretaker manager of Forest Green Rovers, and thus the first woman to lead a men’s professional team in England.

Diacre, now head coach of France’s women’s national team, managed Ligue 2’s Clerment Foot between 2014 and 2017.

 

Final thoughts

The impact therefore, is that Eta’s appointment will show future generations of aspiring female coaches that men’s football is an equally viable and possible pathway as the women’s game.

The time is now to level the playing field.

And while it may be a short-term role, its effect on attitudes towards equality and fair opportunities in the game will hopefully resonate long after the season ends.

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