Cricket World Cup final: England vs New Zealand to be shown live on free-to-air Channel 4

Coverage of Sunday’s final will be shown on Channel 4 and More 4, with live footage also available on Sky Sports, which holds the UK broadcast rights of live coverage of the tournament

Thursday 11 July 2019 17:33 BST
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Cricket World Cup: Five batsmen to watch

England’s Cricket World Cup final against New Zealand will be shown live on free-to-air television.

Coverage of Sunday’s final will be shown on Channel 4 and More 4, with live footage also available on Sky Sports, which holds the UK broadcast rights of live coverage of the tournament.

Channel 4’s coverage will begin at 9am, moving to More 4 at 1.15pm so as not to clash with the British Grand Prix. Coverage will resume after the race has finished.

Channel 4 CEO Alex Mahon said: “This is fantastic news for cricket fans and the nation.

“This Sunday is a massive day for British sport with England tantalisingly close to lifting the Cricket World Cup for the first time and Lewis Hamilton setting his sights on his seventh season win at Silverstone – all live on Channel 4.

“The big winners of this strong partnership between Channel 4 and Sky are sports fans and viewers who want to come together for these big sporting occasions.”

Sky UK and Ireland Chief Executive Stephen van Rooyen said: “England in the Final on home soil is a huge moment for sport in this country and we are proud to be the host broadcaster.

“Thanks to our strong relationship with Channel 4, we are partnering to make the game available to everyone, so the whole country can get behind England, and be part of a special national sporting event.”

International cricket has been behind Sky’s subscription paywall since 2005, when the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) sold the company the exclusive rights.

England swaggered into their first World Cup final in 27 years on Thursday, blowing away rivals Australia by eight wickets in a magnificent display of attacking cricket that sets up a winner-takes-all date with New Zealand at Lord's.

The three-times runners-up are now firm favourites to land the trophy for the first time on Sunday, having thrashed the Black Caps by 119 runs in the group stage, and head to the home of cricket on the back of a sensational performance at Edgbaston.

Chris Woakes, Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid performed wonders with the ball after Australia chose to bat first, reducing the visitors to 14 for three in a frenzied opening burst and ultimately restricting them to a lacklustre 223 all out.

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