Quick turnaround content will be streamed on its digital and social outlets, and distributed internally for re-purposing. The National Hockey League (NHL) is remotely producing live and behind-the-scenes content as it returns to live sport, using cloud video editing platform Blackbird. For the NHL’s 2020 Stanley Cup Qualifiers and 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the NHL […]
Author archives: Jake Bickerton
Sky Sports to show Liverpool v Chelsea live on 22 July on free-to-air
Sky Pick will show the game and the moment Liverpool lifts the Premier League trophy. Sky Sports has announced it’s making the Liverpool v Chelsea Premier League match on 22 July free-to-air on Sky Pick. After the game, Liverpool will lift the Premier League trophy, which will also be part of the free broadcast. Sky […]
Sky Sports wins rights to British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa, 2021
It’s an extension of a rights partnership that now covers 25 years. Sky Sports has picked up the exclusive live rights to the British & Irish Lions Tour to South Africa next year. The rights includes the Tour’s three tests as well as five warm-up matches. This is the 25th year of the partnership between […]
Podcast: Ingrid Silver, partner at Reed Smith, talks sports and Covid-19
Media industry lawyer talks about how the safe return of sports is being enabled, and the legal implications of Covid-19 cancellations. Ingrid Silver, partner, Entertainment and Media Industry Group at global law firm Reed Smith, talks to Broadcast Sport editor Jake Bickerton about the ‘gradual return’ of sports to our screens, following Government guidance that […]
New streamer Peacock picks up Premier League live rights in the USA
NBCUniversal-owned service to air 175 live matches in the Premier League 2020-21 season, and offer full match replays for all 380 games. NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock has picked up live rights for the Premier League 2020-21 season in the US. It will stream 175 live Premier League matches on the paid-for Peacock Premium strand. Meanwhile, […]
World Squash Federation moves to develop squash in the esports sector
Squash governing body teams up with esports specialists to create new esports opportunities for the sport. The World Squash Federation (WSF) has joined the Global Esports Federation (GEF) to bring squash into the esports world. WSF and GEF will work with interactive tech specialist Refract to develop innovative technology to develop squash’s presence in the […]
The Open: AI to pit golfing greats from the last 50 years against each other
Archive content and historic data to bring golfing greats back to the green in a virtual version of The Open. The Open is using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to create a virtual Championship – The Open for The Ages – with many of the golfing greats of the past 50 years taking to the green. The […]
Sunset+Vine wins Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games contract
It will produce 2,000 hours of coverage during the 11 days of the Games, as well as the opening and closing ceremonies. Sunset+Vine has won the Host Broadcaster contract for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. Birmingham 2022 and CGF Partnerships appointed Sunset+Vine after an international tender process. It will capture 2,000 hours of TV coverage […]
COMMENT: Lockdown life – Seven days at Timeline Television in June 2020
Timeline Television technical manager Adam Lowe reveals his lockdown work diary for 11-17 June. 11 June Today is my last day of Live Championship League Snooker for ITV Sport (pictured). We have had the honour/challenge of being the first UK sport back on terrestrial television. It’s been quite a challenge to plan a workflow that […]
Swedish pay-TV operator Com Hem to air 24/7 network Fight Sports
The agreement means Fight Sports will reach almost 1m pay-TV subscribers in Sweden. CSI Sports has signed a long-term carriage deal with Swedish pay-TV operator Com Hem and its brand Boxer, to broadcast CSI Sports’ 24/7 HD network, Fight Sports. This follows Fight Sports being awarded a five-year digital terrestrial television (DTT) license in Sweden. […]
World Table Tennis partners with IMG on production and rights deals
The partnership will attempt to professionalise and commercialise table tennis around the world. World Table Tennis (WTT) is to enter a ‘strategic partnership’ with IMG for the global media rights development and distribution; production oversight of WTT events; and a mandate to grow the sport of table tennis globally. The betting data and streaming rights […]
Podcast: Ron Chakraborty on how the BBC is filling Wimbledon fortnight
A schedule of 50-hours of classic Wimbledon archive content and tennis docs replaces the cancelled Wimbledon 2020. Ron Chakraborty, executive editor, major events at BBC Sport talks to Broadcast Sport editor Jake Bickerton about the BBC’s plans for Wimbledon 2020 following the cancellation of the tournament due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Rather than live tennis […]
Whisper wins Spark Sport cricket contract in New Zealand
The production company reveals its second big cricket win of the week. Whisper has been appointed by Spark Sport to produce all New Zealand Cricket matches played in New Zealand over the next six summers. The production company will produce live coverage of all home Blackcaps and White Ferns Internationals and Super Smash matches on […]
Eurosport to show Berlin’s bett1 ACES tennis tournament (13-19 July)
The competition includes the return of grass courts games. Eurosport has picked up the rights for the bett1 ACES tournament in Berlin next week (13-19 July), which features Dominic Thiem, Alexander Zverev (pictured above, photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images), Tommy Haas, Nick Kyrgios, Elina Svitolina, Kiki Bertens and Petra Kvitova. Eurosport is screening the tournament […]
Five’s The Gadget Show speaks to BT Sport about 8K sports broadcasts
TV tech show interviews BT Sport’s Jamie Hindhaugh and Andy Beale for a report on 8K. This week’s episode of Five’s The Gadget Show features interviews with BT Sport chief operating officer Jamie Hindhaugh and chief engineer Andy Beale at the broadcaster’s first public live 8K HDR sports broadcast. Broadcast Sport was at the same […]
International Rugby League seeks host broadcaster for RLWC2021
The successful applicant will produce and distribute 45 matches of the Rugby League World Cup 2021. Following news of its broadcast partnership, Rugby League World Cup 2021 (RLWC2021) and International Rugby League (IRL) have released an Invitation To Tender for its Host Broadcast Services for next year’s tournament. The successful organisation will be responsible for […]
Promethean TV creates Sports Stats Overlays for mobile streams
The overlays offer insights, sponsored messages and real-time information during a game. Promethean TV has created a Sports Stats Overlay to enable broadcasters to add real-time statistics and information about a game or league to mobile streams. The data includes live scores, league table updates, team line-ups, individual player statistics, head-to-head statistics, polls, sponsored messages […]
Behind-the-scenes: Producing Match of the Day in lockdown
BBC lead executive Steve Rudge goes behind-the-scenes to find Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Ian Wright putting on their own makeup.Producing Match of the Day during the pandemic has meant new ways of working to meet strict health and safety guidelines for production. “The teams at dock10 and the BBC, and the technical teams behind […]
Salsa Sound brings virtual fans to National Women’s Soccer League
Company behind the virtual crowd noise system says it’s simple enough for non-audio professionals to use. The virtual crowd sound for the National Women’s Soccer League Challenge Cup is being created by Salsa Sound’s Crowd DJ technology. This creates responsive crowd sound the company says can “easily respond to every event on the field of […]
Albert Sports Consortium launch addresses environmental impact of sports TV
Industry group’s aim is to explore issues around energy use and travel in relation to sports production and broadcast. Environmental sustainability organisation Albert has launched the Albert Sports Consortium, to specifically focus on the impact sports broadcasting has on the environment. The Albert Sports Consortium includes BT Sport, Sky Sports, BBC, ITV, Sunset & Vine, […]
Whisper to produce BBC cricket content as the sport returns on 8 July
Whisper wins BBC contract as cricket returns, and will also create online highlights for the ECB. Whisper has won the contract to produce the BBC’s peak-time cricket highlights, as the broadcaster begins showing cricket again from Wednesday this week (8 July). Whisper has won a multi-year contract with the BBC to produce TV highlights for […]
Premier League: TV guide and which games are free-to-air (14-22 July)
Which broadcaster is showing which Premier League matches, 14-22 July. The schedule for Premier League matches for the next batch of games taking place from 14-22 July has now been revealed. This follows the schedule for the initial first three match rounds, which we unveiled earlier this month and for 4-13 July 2020. Kick-off times: […]
German sports streamer develops automated production system
AI-driven system will be used to capture and broadcast the majority of the platform’s future sport content. Sports streaming service sporttotal.tv has developed an AI-driven production system that will be used for “almost all” the future sport broadcasts on the platform. The system utilises a weatherproof 180-degree camera and artificial intelligence (AI) created by Berlin-based […]
Rugby League World Cup 2021 to co-pro with International Rugby League
The production and sales of broadcast rights for the Rugby League World Cup 2021 will be handled jointly between the two organisations. Rugby League World Cup 2021 (RLWC2021) and The International Rugby League (IRL) have agreed to work together on the broadcast production of matches at the tournament, as well as on the sale of […]
Black Lives Matter: Sky Sports to issue commentators list of banned words
Broadcaster to distribute list of words and phrases to avoid to commentators, reporters and presenters. Sky Sports is reportedly planning to issue a list of banned words for commentators and sports reporters to avoid, as they might offend viewers. The broadcaster is also holding training sessions for presenters, commentators and reporters to ensure their use […]
BBC to air 12 days of classic Olympics archive material
The content replaces the cancelled 2020 Olympics Games in Tokyo. BBC Sport has scheduled 12 days of dedicated Olympics programming, to replace the cancelled 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Badged Olympics Rewind, and starting on 14 July, the content naturally relies heavily on archive material, through a daily highlights show looking back at some of […]
Gran Turismo esports brings in Getty Images for in-game photography
Real-life photography expertise brought in for esports tournaments. Motorsport specialist photographers at Getty Images have been assigned official in-game photographers for Gran Turismo’s online and live World Tour events. The move to bring in Getty Images to capture images from the esports events is an attempt to bridge the gap between the virtual and real […]
F1 offers fans a chance to have their name on the chequered flag
The rest of the F1 season will feature chequered flags emblazoned with the names of fans, to raise money for the #WeRaceAsOne campaign. A charity initiative by the F1, fulfilled by memorabilia platform F1Authentics, provided F1 fans the chance to buy and have their names on the squares on the race-ending chequered flag for this […]
COMMENT: How to create authentic fan sounds for empty stadiums
DAZN’s Andres Veredas Salazar on creating authentic audio for the Bundesliga’s return to live matches. The sounds are pieced together in real-time from an archive of last season’s matches to create realistic soundscapes for each game. Replicating the atmosphere created by 70,000 fans is no easy task but by adapting existing DAZN technology, we felt […]
Cardiff Met and Ball State Uni team up for feature-length sports doc
The documentary, made by students from the two universities, centres on the role of sport in Welsh life and features interviews with a range of inspiring athletes. Cardiff Metropolitan University has partnered with Indiana’s Ball State University to create a feature-length documentary, Transatlantic Storytelling. The documentary was produced by university students from Ball State’s Emmy […]
Live boxing to return to DAZN in July
Three fights will air exclusively on DAZN in a variety of territories. DAZN will show live boxing once more, from 24 July, with three US cards in five weeks from Golden Boy Promotions and Matchroom Boxing USA. On Friday, 24 July it will air Vergil Ortiz Jr. against Samuel Vargas from Fantasy Springs Resort Casino […]
Rakuten TV unveils 2010 FIFA World Cup doc with Spanish football team
Documentary will go free-to-air on Rakuten Stories from 9 July. Rakuten TV has launched a documentary, The Secrets of La Roja – World Champions 2010, about the Spanish national football team, La Roja winning the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The film will be free-to-air on Rakuten TV’s Rakuten Stories channel from 9 July. It follows […]
Eleven Sports signs five year deal to show Belgian Pro League football
The OTT service has picked up exclusive media rights to the football league. Belgian’s Pro League has reached an agreement with Eleven Sports on a media contract for the coming five years. Under the agreement, Eleven Sports will show all Pro League football competitions – 1A, 1B, Women Super League, the Cup league, the Super […]
Today’s Battle of the Brits tennis tournament (Amazon Prime Video) schedule
Today’s games are listed below. The first behind-closed-doors tennis tournament, Battle of the Brits, is being held this week, with Amazon Prime Video streaming the event in the UK and Ireland. The competition sees Andy Murray making his return to the court. He won yesterday to reach the semi-finals. The tournament runs from Tuesday 23 […]
Japanese cable TV companies to offer DAZN subscriptions
DAZN has partnered with Japan Cable and Telecommunications Association (JCTA) to bring the sports streamer to cable TV households in Japan. Subscribers of participating cable TV companies will be able to add a DAZN subscription to their monthly cable TV bill. The service will be available on 10 cable TV providers in the Hokkaido, Tohoku, […]
GALLERY: World’s Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji (10-part series)
Extreme race lasts for 11 days and covers 671km of rugged, challenging territory. 10-part doc series, World’s Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji, is launching on Amazon Prime Video on Friday 14 August. The series is hosted by Bear Grylls and follows an expedition race with 330 competitors in 66 teams of five, from 30 countries, racing […]
COMMENT: How the industry can redefine itself amid the pandemic
Tata Communications global head of media and entertainment services Dhaval Ponda on the future of production post-lockdown. For the last few months, lockdown measures introduced to stem the spread of Covid-19 have had many of us grounded in our homes. As such, most of us have turned to our TV sets and digital platforms for […]
F1 and AWS create six real-time stats providing insight during races
The six on-screen graphics utilise Machine Learning to analyse real-time data gathered from F1 cars. Formula One is adding six real-time racing stats to its 2020 season. The on-screen graphics have been created using a range of Amazon Web Services (AWS) services, including machine learning. The first of the stats – Car Performance Scores – […]
COMMENT: Understanding why sports fans break the rules
Simon Brydon, senior director, sports rights anti-piracy, Synamedia, on why piracy of sports broadcasts remains a problem and what can be done about it. From spying on an opponent’s training session ahead of a crunch fixture to sandpapering the cricket ball, the dubious ways rules have been bent and broken to give sports teams an […]
DAZN triples Bundesliga coverage in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
The streamer wins four-year deal to extend its coverage of the German football league. DAZN is to triple its Bundesliga coverage in Germany, Austria and Switzerland from 2021, after picking up rights to show every Friday and Sunday Bundesliga football match. The streaming service will broadcast 106 matches per season in a four-year rights deal, […]
The return of sports brings with it the return of streaming pirates
Carlos Rocha Gonçalves at Jscrambler on what’s being done to try to keep the pirates at bay. At last, sport is slowly but surely returning — albeit looking very different to what we all remembered. The global lockdown has seen OTT streaming services soar in popularity and usage, and the return of the sports we […]
30 million views for F1 Esports – Virtual Grand Prix Series
Esports events bring in sizeable global audience. The F1 Esports – Virtual Grand Prix Series pulled in a total of 30 million views across TV and digital platforms during the lockdown period. The Virtual Grand Prix races attracted 21.8 million views on digital platforms alone. It was streamed on the official Formula 1 YouTube, Twitch […]
Rakuten TV launches Serge Ibaka basketball doc
Basketball doc will be available on free-to-air from 25 June. Rakuten TV is releasing documentary Anything Is Possible, about global basketball star Serge Ibaka. The film, which will be available for free from 25 June, provides insight into the life of the NBA’s Toronto Raptors player. Anything Is Possible focuses on Ibaka’s life story and […]
Dugout to live stream behind-the-scenes football and esports content
The content provider’s live streams will include pre- and post-match interviews, action from the training ground and off-field activities. Football content specialist Dugout is launching its first live streaming service. The company, which is co-owned by a long list of many of the world’s biggest football clubs, is best known for providing ‘club-safe’ archive, behind-the-scenes […]
Premier League’s Return – The Broadcast Schedule For 4-13 July
Which broadcaster is showing which Premier League matches, 4-13 July. The schedule for Premier League matches for the next batch of games taking place from 4-13 July has now been revealed. This follows the schedule for the initial first three match rounds, which we unveiled earlier this month. The Premier League returned last night, with […]
LiveScore to live stream Serie A and Primeira Liga matches for free
LiveScore to integrate free live streams of Serie A and Primeira Liga games into its app. Real-time sports updates and results service LiveScore is launching a free live football streaming service after revealing its plans to become “a major new sports streaming platform”. LiveScore has secured live streaming rights for all remaining Serie A matches […]
Return of LaLiga sees 50% growth in international viewers
Spanish league makes big global gains in viewers following its return post-lockdown. LaLiga reports the global audience watching the league since the competition’s restart has grown by almost 50%. Figures from Nielson Sports, for the first matchday, reveal figures for international viewing rose by more than 48%. Certain territories were way above this – across […]
Extreme E makes TV debut with Channel 4 documentary
30-minute film will mark the first television appearance of Extreme E. Channel 4 is airing a documentary about futuristic motorsport Extreme E, which sees electric SUVs race off-road in extremely remote parts of the world. The film, titled How to Build a Racing Car, is scheduled for Thursday, 25 June – “right after Celebrity Gogglebox,” […]
Sky Sports has reportedly secured rebate deal with Premier League
Sky Sports looks set to receive compensation from clubs to mitigate against loss of revenue during lockdown. Sky Sports has reportedly come to a rebate agreement with the Premier League to cover the cancellation of games during the Covid-19 pandemic. During lockdown, with no Premier League games to show, Sky has had to offer refunds […]
Santa Cruz bike ad gets creative during lockdown
A miniature model of Santa Cruz’ new mountain bike, in a back garden in Glasgow, replaces a planned road trip around Greece with Danny MacAskill and Josh Lewis. The advertising campaign for Santa Cruz Bicycles new mountain bike, the 5010, was originally planned to be a road trip through Greece starring Santa Cruz athletes Danny […]
BT Sport unveils £25/month Monthly Pass for Now TV
The pay-as-you-go option has been launched in time for the return of BT Sport’s Premier League matches at the weekend. BT Sport has launched a BT Sport Monthly Pass for Now TV devices. It costs £25 per month and enables owners of Now TV devices to watch BT Sport on a month-by-month basis. Existing BT […]
Amazon Prime Video to air women’s tennis doc, Unraveling Athena
Tennis doc to appear on Amazon Prime Video from 13 July. Amazon Prime Video has secured the exclusive rights to premier Kaleidoscope’s tennis documentary Unraveling Athena in selected European countries including the UK on Monday 13 July. The film, directed by Francis Amat, and named after the Greek goddess of tactics and skill, wisdom and […]
COMMENT: Esports and broadcast – The legal issues of partnership
Hayley Brady, partner and UK head of media and digital, Herbert Smith Freehills (pictured below) on the potential legal pitfalls to overcome when broadcasting esports events. The Covid-19 pandemic has stripped global television schedules of traditional content, with sports broadcasters instead sourcing a great deal of fresh content from esports. Well-publicised examples include Sky’s multi-day […]
UK Flat Track motorcycle racing documentary film in the making
The filmmaker behind a character-based film and mini series about the obscure motorsport and those that take part is currently looking for funding. Johny Mourgue, a director working within commercials, short films and docs (credits include FA Cup with Budweiser, Reebok and Channel 4’s Random Acts), is working on a film about Flat Track motorcycle […]
Optus Sport to show all remaining Premier League games
The broadcaster will show the return of the Premier League and also unveil a new OTT app. Australia’s Optus Sport is showing all 92 remaining live games of the 2019/20 Premier League season. In common with many other broadcasters screening live matches being played in empty stadiums, fans will have the option to watch games […]
BBC to air 50 hours of Wimbledon archive programming
Two-weeks of classic Wimbledon coverage will replace Wimbledon 2020 on the BBC. The BBC is to host 50+ hours of classic Wimbledon content from 29 June, to replace the cancelled Wimbledon 2020 tournament. Every weeknight from 8pm, BBC2 will serve up Wimbledon archive material, hosted by Sue Barker. She will be joined by Tim Henman […]
Eurosport to show weekend of esports featuring global sports superstars
Broadcaster to air extensive coverage from the weekend-long Pro Evolution Soccer 2020 competition. Eurosport is to screen this weekend’s celebrity esports tournament, Solidarity Challenge. The contest sees football, golf, rugby and athletics stars compete in an eFootball Pro Evolution Soccer (PES) 2020 tournament, while raising awareness and donations for the Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund for […]
Creative: Champions Hockey League unveils revamped title sequence
Design studio Jump has updated the opening title sequence for the Champions Hockey League 2020/2021 season. The updated titles were commissioned by sports marketing agency Infront and bring the style in line with the broadcast graphics package rolled out by the Champions Hockey League three years ago. These were also designed by Jump. Jump art […]
Eurosport agrees seven-year deal to screen superbike series
Broadcaster renews deal with British superbike event it’s been showing live since 2008. Eurosport has renewed its media partnership with the Bennetts British Superbike Championship to show exclusive live coverage from the event. It has agreed a new seven-year deal with rights holders MotorSport Vision Racing, which begins in 2021. Eurosport will continue to air […]
Celtic FC brings in Sunset+Vine for fan-focused matchday content
Football club creates content for season ticket holders unable to attend games. Celtic Football Club has appointed Sunset+Vine Scotland to create matchday programming as part of a ‘televised ticket offering’ to supporters. With fans unable to attend matches during the pandemic, the club is creating a range of content from each game designed to give […]
The future of sports broadcasting rights in a post-Covid world
COMMENT: Tomos Jones, senior associate at global law firm Reed Smith on the changing value of sports rights in a post-Covid world. At the time of writing, live sports events are showing the first, tentative signs of ‘getting the show back on the road’. Major football and cricket events now have scheduled resumption dates, and […]
Scott Young, F1 head at Sky Sports to lead production at Eurosport
Major appointment will build on Eurosport’s recent tech-led transformation of its production operations. Eurosport has announced another high-profile appointment with the recruitment of Scott Young as senior vice president, production and content. Young has more than 30 years experience across live sports, major event production and on-screen innovation. Young joins from Sky Sports, where he’s […]
S4C takes Super Rugby tournament free-to-air
Welsh broadcaster to present weekly highlights programme from the tournament, available on BBC iPlayer. S4C has secured rights to show New Zealand’s Super Rugby Aotearoa tournament. The 10-week competition involves five New Zealand teams – Blues, Hurricanes, Crusaders, Highlanders and Warren Gatland’s Chiefs – playing each other home and away, with two matches played every […]
Sky Sports and BT Sport unveil ‘watch together’ option to apps
Broadcasters both launch watch together services that will be available in time for the return of the Premier League. Sky Sports and BT Sport are both using the return of the Premier League to unveil new ‘watch together’ services. Sky Sports’ service is called Fanzone (pictured above), and will be available on the Sky Sports […]
LaLiga to use virtual fans and audio to liven up empty stadiums
Stands will “closely resemble how they looked and sounded before the competition was postponed.” LaLiga is to use digitally recreated fan audio and virtualised stands for the rest of the season, and for as long as matches are played behind closed doors. It will also introduce new camera angles. The stands will be filled with […]
Eurosport hires Amar Melwani to bolster its D2C offering
Eurosport recruits OTT/D2C specialist to grow its D2C services. Eurosport has taken on Amar Melwani in the newly created position of vp, distribution partnerships and rights strategy. It’s part of a move by Eurosport to bolster its direct-to-consumer (D2C) efforts. Melwani joins from The Walt Disney Company where he worked on Disney+. He previously led […]
Premier League’s return – The broadcast schedule for first three rounds
Which broadcaster is showing which games, for the first three match rounds, and which games will be free-to-air. Here’s the full list of which broadcasters are showing which games for the first three rounds of the resumed 2019/20 Premier League season. Wednesday 17 June 18:00 Aston Villa v Sheffield Utd (Sky Sports) 20:15 Man City […]
Eurosport to show Norway’s Eliteserien football
The broadcaster will show at least the opening three match days of Norway’s premier football competition. Eurosport is to screen the first three match days of Norway’s Eliteserien football division. Action begins on Tuesday 16 June with champions Molde playing Aalesunds FK. Eurosport has exclusive rights to broadcast the games across Europe, and will show […]
BBC 2 schedules classic Test match and One Day cricket from the archives
Broadcaster unveils extensive schedule of Test and One Day International cricket highlights of matches from the archives, kicking off this month with vintage England v West Indies clashes. BBC 2 is re-running highlights from every Test and One Day International cricket match, starting in July. It’s also showing highlights from England v West Indies classic […]
BT Sport launches a series of live interactive sports quizzes
The competitions provide an opportunity for fans to take part against BT Sport presenters and sports stars. BT Sport has launched a series of ‘pop up’ live quiz shows around its sports properties, including football, boxing, rugby, WWE and UFC. One of these – an interactive live quiz called The Beautiful Quiz – sees BT […]