FOX adds Women's Euro 2025, prioritizes international focus
FOX made another splash in the American soccer media landscape by locking up the rights to the UEFA Women’s Euro in 2025. The top international women’s soccer competition in Europe previously aired on ESPN. However, in 2025, it joins an impressive array of international soccer competitions airing in the United States on FOX.
With the addition of the 2025 Women’s Euro, FOX is broadcasting the men’s European Championship, Copa America, Gold Cup and select games in Major League Soccer. The biggest properties for FOX remain the FIFA World Cup and Women’s World Cup. Yet, many of the teams having success in the Women’s World Cup play their other major competition in the Women’s Euro. For example, five of the eight quarterfinalists from the Women’s World Cup in 2023 hailed from Europe. That included the eventual champion, Spain, and the winner of the Women’s Euro in 2022, England.
With the acquisition of the Women’s Euro in 2025, FOX has reasserted itself as the home of international soccer in the United States. Looking across the next summers, FOX will be a constant presence for American soccer fans. This summer, FOX is providing sunrise-to-sunset coverage of both the European Championship and Copa America. Now, in 2025, the Women’s Euro switches from ESPN to FOX. In 2026, the men’s World Cup plays out its biggest tournament ever with 48 teams playing in the United States, Canada and Mexico. Then, the Women’s World Cup is airing on FOX in 2027. Finally, the summers of soccer on FOX continue into 2028.
Women’s Euro in 2025 gives FOX monopoly on international soccer
What this shows is that FOX has made a nook in the American soccer scene. While ESPN, CBS and NBC squabble with various club soccer rights, FOX is the home of the vast majority of top-level competitive soccer games. In doing so, FOX moved away from club soccer. There remains a weekly Major League Soccer game available on FOX’s channels, but international soccer is clearly the priority.
In men’s soccer, the continued growth of the popularity of soccer in the United States has led to massive audiences for FOX. For example, the 2022 World Cup Final drew 26 million viewers on FOX as Argentina defeated France. Each of the three USMNT games pulled over 15 million viewers in the group stage and round of 16. With more teams competing, FOX has access to more games at the 2026 World Cup. That, along with the USMNT’s appearance in the 2024 Copa America and Gold Cup, gives FOX ample games that fans in the United States want to watch.
The same is true for women’s soccer. The Women’s side of the game has always been popular in the United States, often as a credit to the USWNT’s success. Still, the Women’s World Cup had massive audiences in brutal time slots from Australia and New Zealand. Over 1.5 million people watched Spain defeat England in the early morning hours. Overall ratings for the USWNT in 2023 were the highest they had been since 2019, another Women’s World Cup year. Many of the biggest games for the side are available on FOX because of its rights ownership. Now, the likes of Spain, England, Germany, France and other top women’s teams will play one another on FOX next summer.
The tournament is in Switzerland, and it starts on July 2. With FOX owning the rights, games are likely to air on Fox Sports 1 and Fox Sports 2. The broadcast FOX channel may also air games.
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