The BKT United Rugby Championship (URC) has confirmed that American rugby fans will continue to have full access to the league after extending its partnership with FloSports until 2027. The deal ensures that all 151 matches each season will be streamed live and on-demand via FloRugby, cementing the platform as the home of club rugby in the United States.
FloRugby already delivers wall-to-wall coverage of rugby’s biggest competitions in the United States, with the URC now sitting alongside Super Rugby, the Premiership, the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge CUpto provide more than 1,000 matches per season. The service is also expanding beyond live action, with round-the-clock reporting, social programming and the launch of Athlete’s Lounge, a new live show featuring top players, expert punditry and guest interviews.
The partnership builds on FloRugby’s comprehensive coverage of the URC since 2022, continuing a relationship that began in the PRO14 era. With the 2031 and 2033 Men’s and Women’s Rugby World Cups also set to be heading state-side, this is a pivotal venture to help rugby ‘break America’ and get more eyes on the game ‘across the pond’.
URC CEO Martin Anayi emphasised the importance of continuity in the US market:
“This news means that fans in the United States will be able to continue watching the BKT URC on a platform that is familiar, reliable and totally dedicated to rugby. When it comes to building audiences in global territories, consistency is such a vital weapon and providing the same American home for our league for five straight years is very reassuring.
“FloRugby’s rights acquisitions are a clear sign of how much they believe in rugby and in growing the game in the U.S. market. We’re excited to see how their fresh and innovative approach to non-live content will help drive even more interest in our games.”
The announcement comes just as the fifth URC season kicks off on Friday, September 26, giving US fans immediate access to every match. FloRugby’s accessibility continues to expand across connected devices, with apps available on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, and soon on Samsung, Vizio and LG Smart TVs, ensuring fans can watch the URC wherever they are.
For UK and Irish fans, this renewed deal is also significant. A stronger American broadcast partnership means greater commercial income for the competition as a whole — benefiting the four Irish provinces and Welsh regions, along with Scotland’s premier clubs Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh. With the URC increasingly positioning itself as a global product, the added investment from international markets should help strengthen the league, support player pathways, and grow the profile of Northern Hemisphere club rugby on the world stage.
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