Welsh language broadcaster to air first game of tournament as well as all Wales matches

S4C rugby world cup

Whisper Cymru will produce S4C’s coverage of the Rugby World Cup.

The Welsh-language broadcast will start its coverage 8 September with the first game of the tournament, and then go on to broadcast every Wales match. It will also show the third-place play-offs, the semi-final and the final. 

The presentations will be onsite in France, and led by Sarra Elgan and Jason Mohammed, with a number of well-known guest pundits, including Mike Philips, Siwan Lillicrap and Robin McBryde. The team will have two presentation positions in France, with one being pitch-side.  

Carys Owens and Siôn Jones will lead the production team in France as executive producers, with Ceri Jenkins as producer. Its Cymru team has grown from seven in 2019 to 23 in 2023, with another six positions currently advertised.

In addition to the live content, Whisper will produce digital content and a tournament preview with exclusive access in the Welsh camp. It has also produced a documentary about Ifan Phillips, the former Wales U20 player who had a leg amputated following a serious motorbike accident in 2021.  

With the accident ending Phillips’ rugby career, the S4C-commissioned documentary which is called Ifan Philips: y Cam Nesaf, follows his recovery over the next 18 months. It will be broadcast on 28 September, at 9pm.   

S4C director of content & publishing strategy Geraint Evans and sport commissioner Graham Davies spoke to Broadcast Sport about S4C’s plans for the Rugby World Cup and its larger sport strategy earlier this week, which you can read here.

Evans said of Whisper: “We are delighted to partner with Whisper on our coverage for the Rugby World Cup and extend the great working relationship that we have with the company. 

“S4C and Whisper will be the Welsh team in France. If anyone is looking for in-depth well-informed coverage, by a passionate new team which will have Wales at its heart, then S4C is the channel to watch. We’re really looking forward to supporting Wales throughout the campaign.”