The 2021 Weber WBBL|07 regular season has broken viewing records as the most-watched ever season across the Foxtel Group and at the FTA rights holder Seven.
The Perth Scorchers secured their first Weber WBBL title on the weekend, watched by a record number of fans at Optus Stadium and on Seven and Foxtel.
The biggest WBBL standalone crowd ever of 15,511 and the competition’s largest ever average broadcast audience of 535,000 witnessed a clinical performance as the Scorchers defeated the Adelaide Strikers by 12 runs in the Weber WBBL|07 Final.
The Weber WBBL|07 Final was the most-watched game in League history, with a combined average audience of 535,000 tuning in across linear TV and streaming platforms, eclipsing the 506,000 audience for the WBBL|04 Final played as a broadcast double-header before a Men’s Test match.
PERTH, AUSTRALIA – NOVEMBER 27: Heather Graham of the Scorchers bats during the Women’s Big Bash League Final match between the Perth Scorchers and the Adelaide Strikers at Optus Stadium, on November 27, 2021, in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)
Weber WBBL|07 was also the most-watched season ever, with a cumulative average linear TV audience of 5.36 million viewers.
This represented an increase of 15% on the WBBL|06 cumulative average audience, attributable to both a 59-game broadcast footprint across Seven and Foxtel for the first time, and higher average per-game audiences across simulcast (+1%) and Fox exclusive (+50%) matches.
Across Foxtel and Kayo viewing was up 32% YoY, with streaming audiences in particular increasing across Foxtel Now, Foxtel Go and Kayo, with a 158% positive shift YoY.
Claiming top spot during the season in the viewership rankings was Game 3 between Sydney Thunder and the Adelaide Strikers as the #1 rating regular season standalone WBBL game of all-time with 89,000 fans tuning in on Foxtel and Kayo.
Additionally, the eliminator and challenger games on Wednesday and Thursday saw an average audience of 68,000 tuning in on Foxtel, or streaming on Kayo, Foxtel Now and Foxtel Go. Leading into Saturday night’s Final between Perth Scorchers and Adelaide Strikers with an average audience of 130,000.
This season fans were treated to more WBBL action than ever before with every match – 59 in total – broadcast on Foxtel and Kayo for the first time this year.
Matt Weiss, general manager, Fox Cricket said: “We were stoked with the number of fans watching our coverage of WBBL this season as the broadcast team delivering live coverage of all 59 matches for the first time.
“The way in which women’s cricket in Australia continues to grow is remarkable and we are very proud to be able to showcase the skills of these athletes for many more years to come and provide a powerful advertising platform for our partners.
“The WBBL has been a brilliant way to kick off our Summer of Cricket and now we’re all set for a huge Ashes and BBL. Bring it on.”
The Foxtel Group’s 2.4 million sport subscribers will have access to watch more than 1,300 hours of live cricket during the 2021/22 season, with every game of the Ashes and select other matches available in 4K UHD on Foxtel.