ICC Women's T20 World Cup: Record audiences tune in for opening weekend of 2026 tournament live on Sky Sports

The opening weekend of the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup 2026 was the most watched ever of any ICC T20 Women’s tournament on record with 3.3 million viewer hours on Sky Sports.

Friday's opener between England and Sri Lanka also drew the highest average on record (393k) for the T20 tournament with a peak audience of 510k watching a Danni Wyatt-Hodge-inspired England victory.

As part of Sky's commitment to making the tournament available to the biggest possible audience, including select games shown free-to-air and on the Sky Sports app, the opening game was also streamed on YouTube with nearly 75k people watching whilst the live blog on Sky Sports.com delivered over 90k views.

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The tournament kicks off a standout summer of women's cricket on Sky, including an historic first-ever women's Test match at Lord's between England and India starting on 10 July, alongside The Hundred's return later in the month. July will also see the Vitality Blast Women's Finals Day.

Sky Sports continues to be the home of the best women's sport, with a bumper 2026 of live coverage including the ICC Women's T20 World Cup, the Netball Super League Grand Final, the US Open, and the Solheim Cup. Viewers can also enjoy expanded coverage of the Barclays Women's Super League from the 2026/27 season, year-round action from the WTA Tour, every golf Major, MVP boxing events and much more.

Stream T20 World Cup matches for FREE

Everyone can stream all 12 group matches involving England, Scotland and Ireland, as well as the semi-finals and final of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup live for FREE on the Sky Sports App.

All you have to do is download the latest version of the Sky Sports App onto your phone or tablet and log in.

Download the Sky Sports App on:

• iPhone & iPad
• Android

Watch every ball of the ICC Women's T20 World Cup exclusively live on Sky Sports and NOW, right through to the final on July 5.

Matches available for FREE on the Sky Sports app:

Friday June 12: England vs Sri Lanka, Edgbaston 6.30pm

Saturday June 13: Scotland vs Ireland, Old Trafford Cricket Ground 10.30am

Tuesday June 16: England vs Ireland, Hampshire Bowl 6.30pm

Thursday June 18: West Indies vs Scotland, Headingley 6.30pm

Friday June 19: New Zealand vs Ireland, Hampshire Bowl 6.30pm

Saturday June 20: England vs Scotland, Headingley 6.30pm

Tuesday June 23: New Zealand vs Scotland, Bristol County Ground 10.30am

Tuesday June 23: Sri Lanka vs Ireland, Bristol County Ground 2.30pm

Wednesday June 24: England vs West Indies, Lord's Cricket Ground 6.30pm

Friday June 26: Sri Lanka vs Scotland, Old Trafford Cricket Ground 6.30pm

Saturday June 27: West Indies vs Ireland, Bristol County Ground 2.30pm

Saturday June 27: England vs New Zealand, The Oval 6.30pm

Tuesday June 30: TBC vs TBC (Semi Final 1), The Oval 2.30pm

Thursday July 2: TBC vs TBC (Semi Final 2), The Oval 6.30pm

Sunday July 5: TBC vs TBC (The Final), Lord's Cricket Ground 2.30pm