Live football returns to UK screens at the weekend on BT Sport. BT Sport has revealed details of its Bundesliga coverage as it returns this weekend. The broadcaster will exclusively cover the matches live in the UK, screening nine Bundesliga matches this weekend (Saturday 16 May-Monday 18 May). It will then broadcast every match for […]
Category archives: Media Rights
Optus Sport wins K League rights for Australia
Live football in the K League begin again tomorrow. Optus Sport has picked up the Australian rights to South Korea’s top division of football, K League. It’s the second major Asian football win for Optus Sport following its acquisition of J.League rights for Australia earlier this year. The K League is one of the first […]
SailGP reschedules 2020 season to 2021, voids 2020 Sydney race
High octane catamaran race tournament ditches 2020 season due to the pandemic. SailGP, the race series featuring supercharged F50 catamarans, has suspended this year’s season, rescheduling all races to 2021. The results from the 2020 Sydney race – the first and only completed SailGP event of the year – will be null and void. The […]
BBC Sport preps summer of presenter-led archive re-runs
Contingency plan couples magazine formats with archive classics. BBC Sport has begun prepping for when the worst of the current Covid-19 restrictions are lifted as it readies magazine formats to accompany archive classics over the summer. Head of TV sport Phillip Bernie is drawing up contingency plans for how to film formats in a semi-lockdown […]
Podcast: BT Sport COO Jamie Hindhaugh on creating a virtual studio during lockdown
BT Sport has decentralised production to enable presenters and crew to create, produce and broadcast live shows from their homes. Episode 8 of the Broadcast Tech Talks podcast series sees BT Sport COO Jamie Hindhaugh talking with Broadcast Sport editor Jake Bickerton about how the broadcaster has responded to lockdown. Working to a very tight […]
Dugout to provide exclusive football clips to Chinese platform PP Sports
The football video archive, owned by some of the world’s biggest clubs, is providing a range of content for Chinese football fans. Dugout has announced a new video content partnership with Chinese digital platform, PP Sports, to help meet the increasing demand for football content from fans in China. Dugout, which is co-owned by 10 […]
Sports channel Unbeaten launches on OTT platform TVPlayer
It will host daily sports news and a range of original sports programming. A new subscription sports channel, Unbeaten, has launched on OTT platform TVPlayer to cover sports news and broadcast original programming featuring “high-profile” sports stars. The channel will host a range of daily news shows – Life’s a Pitch, Sport Confidential, The Football […]
Sports industry experts join webinar to discuss the impact of the pandemic
Sign up now to hear experts from BT Sport, Noah Media, Excel Sports and FACEIT at 4pm on 14 April. BT Media & Broadcast is running a virtual roundtable webinar, The changing content landscape, at 4pm on Tuesday 14 April. The event will discuss the way the sports industry is evolving in its response to […]
DAZN picks up WWE for Germany, Austria and Switzerland
Sports streamer adds live and on-demand WWE content to its sports content across these territories. WWE has agreed a multi-year deal with DAZN for live and on demand programming of weekly WWE content for DAZN in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Beginning this week, WWE Raw and SmackDown shows will go out with the original US […]
Eleven Sports wins rights to DTM racing in Poland and Belgium
Iconic touring-car series joins Eleven Sports’ racing content in these markets. Eleven Sports has picked up the rights to the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) racing series in Poland and Belgium. DTM bills itself as the most popular touring-car series in Europe, featuring spectacular races and cutting-edge coupe cars. The series of 10 race days is […]
Eleven Sports Belgium signs up NBA TV
Basketball fans will have a chance to see some action while the coronavirus pauses live games Eleven Sports is to show NBA TV in its efforts to bring viewers content while live games are postponed. The competition was postponed on 11 March, and it looks unlikely to come back any time soon as the coronavirus […]
Belarus Premier League live sport gamble lands 10 TV deals
It is the last division in Europe to still be playing amid the coronavirus pandemic The Belarus Premier League has signed ten new TV rights deals as it continues to play despite the coronavirus pandemic. The division is the last to still be playing in Europe professionally, as the continent sees sporting events cancelled due […]
Eurovision Sport negotiates sport archive access for EBU members
The organisation has helped others across Europe to have access to the World Cup, Tour de France, and other major events Eurovision Sport has negotiated with sport federations to gain access to archive footage for European Broadcasting Union (EBU) members. The EBU revealed that the company had spoken with sports federations it is partnered with […]
Tech Talks podcast: Duncan Alexander on the power of football stats during the pandemic
Episode #3 of the new Broadcast Tech Talks podcast is with Stats Perform/OptaJoe football statistician, broadcaster and author Duncan Alexander In this eight-minute interview – the third in the new Broadcast Tech Talks podcast series – Stats Perform chief data editor Duncan Alexander provides some fascinating insight into how historic football data consistently unearths new […]
Sky and BT could lose over £900m if sport remains postponed until August
Enders Analysis has looked into the impact of a long-term pause in live sport Sky and BT could lose £928m if live sport is suspended until August, claims a report from Enders Analysis. The broadcasters have been hit by postponements to live events as part of measures to combat the coronavirus pandemic. As a result, […]
Fox to broadcast entire Nascar esports series after record-breaking opener
Nascar has turned to esports while races are postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic Fox Sports has agreed to broadcast the entirety of the eNascar iRacing Pro invitational Series, after success with the first race. The broadcaster aired the first event on Sunday, 22 March, and drew 903,000 viewers to FS 1 – according to […]
Expert predicts turmoil for F1 as coronavirus effects hit
The racing series has had to delay the start to its season Formula One could be facing trouble with its broadcast and sponsorship incomes due to the effects of the coronavirus lockdowns. The racing series has had to delay the start to its season until at least June, with the iconic Monaco Grand Prix outright […]
Report: ESPN and Fox to show Fury v Wilder 3 in October
Tyson Fury defeated Deontay Wilder last year, in their second fight Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder are set to fight for a third time later this year, with ESPN and Fox collaborating on the pay-per-view, according to reports. The Athletic has revealed that the pair are to face each other on 3 October this year. […]
Industry figure warns of ‘huge decline’ in Premier League broadcast income
Sports Lawyer Richard Cramer has some dramatic predictions for the sport industry Sports lawyer Richard Cramer believes the Premier League could lose money on broadcasting rights deals if the current coronavirus lockdown continues. Speaking to the The Sun, Cramer points to a lack of Sky subscriptions potentially causing the company to re-evaluate its huge rights […]
Discovery to move over £149m of Olympics costs to 2021 after postponement
The company revealed the news in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange commission on 24 March Discovery, the parent company of European sport broadcaster Eurosport, has revealed that it expects to move between $175 million (£149m) and $200 million (£170m) of Olympics costs to 2021. The move from the Japanese government and IOC […]
APAC sports media set for £1.7 billion coronavirus hit
However, Media Partners Asia does believe that there is some hope for the future Research and analytics agency Media Partners Asia (MPA) believes the APAC sport media sector could lose $2 billion (£1.7bn) in revenue from the coronavirus pandemic. Originally the Asia Pacific Sports Media 2020 report had estimated that there would be $5.7 billion […]
DFL postpones invitation to tender for Bundesliga rights
The Covid-19 pandemic means it’s no longer aiming to seal a deal by the end of May The German Football League (DFL) has announced that it is postponing its invitation to tender for domestic Bundesliga rights for the 2021-22 until 2024-25 seasons. On Tuesday 24 March, the governing body also decided to extend the suspension […]
Noah Media lands rights to AFL doc, The Australian Dream
The company will handle international sales for the film about AFL legend Adam Goodes Noah Media Group has acquired the international sales rights to Australian Football League feature documentary The Australian Dream. Directed by Daniel Gordon, known for his work on Hillsborough, written by journalist Stan Grant, and produced by Oscar winner John Battsek, the […]
MPs slam government for refusing to consider Six Nations listed status
The DCMS committee had called for the competition’s status to be reviewed The Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport Committee has made clear its disappointment in the government rejecting its calls to consider the Six Nations’ listed event status. The competition has been the focus of reports that it may go behind a paywall, with the […]
ESPN turns to news and studio shows during postponements
Archival content and special events could also help in the medium term ESPN has revealed its plan to continue programming during the sports postponements caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The broadcaster has lost access to many live sport events that would usually fill it schedule over the next month and beyond. However, executive vice president, […]
Eleven Sports secures exclusive domestic rights to Belgian football
The deal will run from the 2020-21 season through to 2024-25 Eleven Sports has secured exclusive domestic rights to show the Belgian professional football leagues for the next five years. It is the first time that the company has secured domestic rights for a competition. The broadcaster has had a slightly rocky road to gaining […]
Premier League fears broadcasters may sue over postponed season
The league has plans to fight back if Sky and BT move to recoup losses The Premier League is concerned that broadcasters may attempt to sue them over postponed matches, according to reports. The Daily Mail has reported that clubs are worried about the repercussions were they unable to complete the current season by 31 […]
Blast Premier esports tournament signs exclusive deal with TV2
The broadcaster will have exclusive rights in Norway TV2 Norway has agreed to be the exclusive Norwegian TV and online broadcaster for the Blast Premier season and Blast Premier Showdown Nordic qualifying tournament. The Counter Strike: Global Offensive esports tournament sees teams fighting it out for a $4.25 million (£3.47m) prize pool. TV2 will be […]
Facebook agrees deal with Fox Sports for Copa Libertadores rights
Fox Sports will continue to partner with the streaming platform in South America Facebook has agreed a deal with FOX Sports for Copa Libertadores media rights in Spanish speaking South America. The social media giant’s streaming platform, Facebook Watch, has renewed a sublicensing agreement with the pay-tv broadcaster to share rights until the quarter-final stage […]
IMG Arena agrees rights deal with European Volleyball Confederation
It has secured a worldwide live betting streaming and betting data rights partnership IMG Arena has agreed a long-term deal with the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) for the worldwide live betting streaming and betting data rights. Sports betting companies will have access to content from all three forms of volleyball – regular, beach, and snow. […]
BBC director general expects Six Nations to ‘probably’ go behind paywall despite bidding plan
Tony Hall does not hold high hopes for stopping pay-tv providers BBC director general Tony Hall has revealed how the BBC and ITV hope to keep the Six Nations free-to-air. Speaking at a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport hearing on the work of the BBC on Thursday, Hall revealed that the public broadcaster is currently […]
FA looks to monetise women’s football rights for first time
It has brought in media rights specialists, Women’s Sport Group The FA is looking to monetise women’s football rights for the first time. Since 2011, the BBC and BT Sport have shown the Women’s Super League (WSL), only covering production costs in return – reports The Telegraph. The FA also launched the FA Player – […]
The future of sport is streaming, says Greg Rusedski
The former UK no.1 is a part of Amazon Prime Video’s tennis coverage Former world no.4 tennis player and current Amazon Prime Video pundit Greg Rusedski believes streaming services are the future of sports broadcasting. Speaking to Broadcast Sport, the 46-year-old explained how younger audiences and affordability will allow streamers to overtake traditional broadcasters. Rusedski […]
Coronavirus could force free-to-air Premier League and pause of 3pm blackout
Administrators and broadcasters have met to discuss options The FA is likely to allow the screening of games during the 3pm blackout if the coronavirus forces games to be played behind closed doors. In addition, Sky and BT could be asked to make games free-to-air, reports The Times. However, steps would also be taken to […]
PGA Tour agrees improved media rights deal with US broadcasters
There is also a deal for the LPGA The PGA Tour has agreed a nine-year media rights deal with CBS Sport, NBC Sport, and ESPN. The new agreement sees CBS and NBC keep coverage of the tour, with ESPN acquiring the digital rights for its ESPN+ service. Variety reports that the deal is an increase […]
MotoGP partners with Facebook to provide exclusive content
Fans will be able to see behind-the-scenes content MotoGP has partnered with Facebook to show content during the 2020 season. The motorbike racing series has agreed to allow original and exclusive behind-the-scenes content from the competition to be made available worldwide on Facebook Watch. It will cover all four classes of MotoGP. The streaming platform […]
Extreme E agrees deal with BBC for digital coverage
The off-road racing series will be live and free-to-air for British viewers Extreme E has agreed a multi-year deal with BBC Sport to show the sport on its digital channels. First announced at the Broadcast Sport Content Summit on Thursday, the off-road racing series will be shown live and free-to-air to British viewers – from […]
MPs demand answers on Six Nations paywall deal
It has been reported that a deal is likely The Digital, Media, Culture, and Sport (DCMS) committee has demanded answers from the Six Nations on reports that a pay-tv deal is possible. It has asked Chairman of the Six Nations Council, John Jeffrey, to explain the timescale and operations of the bidding process. MPs have […]
EFL open to online streaming in international rights sale
It is searching for advisors to help with a new deal The English Football League (EFL) is looking for independent advisors to provide advice during the sale of its international broadcast rights for post-2022. The organisation is looking to find the best approach to maximise both value and exposure in this round of rights sales. […]
Infront and European Volleyball Confederation seal expanded 12-year deal
Infront will distribute media rights for CEV’s competitions Infront and the European Volleyball Confederation (CEV) have agreed a 12-year media rights distribution deal. The agreement was approved by a CEV extraordinary general meeting in Vienna, Austria on Saturday 29 February. It runs from 2020 to 2032 and means that CEV events across all three disciplines […]
Facebook to stream two FA Cup fifth round matches
Reading v Sheffield United and Leicester City v Birmingham City will be shown through the platform Facebook has reached an agreement with the FA to stream two FA Cup fifth round matches this week. The social media giant will show Reading v Sheffield United and Leicester City v Birmingham City through its Facebook Watch platform […]
Discovery and UCI partner to promote Track Cycling World League
Discovery channels such as Eurosport will give the league exposure Discovery and the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) have partnered to promote the Track Cycling World League, which will get underway in 2021. Signed at the 2020 UCI Track Cycling World Championships in Berlin, the agreement will mean that the management, TV production and distribution of […]
Could we be seeing the end of pay-tv packages?
Tomos Jones, senior associate at Reed Smith, takes a look at the future of sports broadcasting models What can we learn from recent developments in the pay television sector? Everything from Disney’s deal with Sky to place the new Disney+ service on Sky’s top boxes, to BT’s new packaging structure and the recent news that […]
Six Nations refuse BBC/ITV joint bid to leave door open for Sky
It would be the first time in two decades it has gone behind a paywall It has been reported that the Six Nations has refused to let the BBC and ITV make a combined bid for the competition in the next set of TV rights bidding. This could leave the door open for Sky Sports, […]
SailGP reveals enhanced broadcast to be shown in 146 territories
It has teamed up with Whisper Films and others SailGP will be showing its second season in 146 territories around the world. In addition, the organisation has added analysis, graphics, app features, and more to enhance their broadcast around the world. It will be remote produced by Timeline from their Ealing Broadcast Centre, and use […]
Esports media rights predicted to grow rapidly in 2020
Media rights and streaming are among the factors pushing growth in revenues A report on esports from market intelligence company Newzoo expects the sport to grow quickly in 2020. Year-on-year the sport is predicted to have 15.7% growth from 2019, not including revenues from betting, fantasy leagues, similar cash-payout concepts, and revenues generated within games […]
HBA Media secures worldwide coverage of the Saudi Cup
It will have a potential reach of more than 400 million HBA Media has secured worldwide coverage of the world’s most valuable horse race, the $20 million (£15.45m) Saudi Cup. The international horse racing media rights agency has worked to make sure that the race will be broadcast in every major continent to over 100 […]
Eurosport secures Olympic handball rights for Nordic nations
It will be showing the qualification tournaments ahead of Tokyo 2020 Eurosport has secured a deal for the rights to show the handball qualification tournaments for the 2020 Olympics in four Scandinavian nations. It will be exclusively showing the competitions in Denmark, Finland, Sweden, and Norway. The latter two will be involved along with a […]
Premiership Rugby appoints chief marketing officer
It has also found a chief commercial officer Premiership Rugby has appointed Zoe Clapp as its chief marketing officer. Meanwhile, Mark Brittain has joined the organisation as chief commercial officer. Clapp was formerly at UKTV, where she spent 15 years and before she left was the chief marketing and communications officer. In her new role […]
Eurosport extends rights to show Grand Tour events
It will also be showing flagship women’s races in a historic first Eurosport has agreed a deal for the rights to show two Grand Tour cycling events and two major women’s races in Europe until 2025. Eurovision Sport and the Amaury Sport Organisation (ASO) have agreed the deal, which allows Eurosport to show the Tour […]
BT Sport, ITV, and Queensbury Promotions to share Fury v Wilder content
They will be sharing programming ahead of Sunday’s big fight BT Sport, ITV, and Queensbury Promotions have agreed to share their boxing content ahead of Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder’s rematch on Sunday morning. The two heavyweights will face each other in a highly anticipated bout for the WBC heavyweight title at the MGM Grand […]
DAZN sign exclusive rights to show Wilder v Fury across four European nations
They also have non-exclusive rights to show it in Switzerland DAZN has secured the rights to show the heavyweight title bout between Tyson Fury and Deontay Wilder in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Spain, and Italy. They will be streaming it exclusively in Germany, Austria, Spain, and Italy, and non-exclusively in Switzerland. Boxing fans will be able […]
Sky Sports secures exclusive IPL rights
It has signed a three-year deal to show the cricket tournament Sky Sports has secured a three-year deal to exclusively show the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the UK. The broadcaster held the rights to the T20 tournament from 2015-18, but lost out to BT Sports at the last minute for 2019. It had been […]
False start for UK Athletics in BBC renewal talks
Governing body set for tough negotiations with fears broadcaster will look for cut-price deal UK Athletics is facing trouble in its negotiations with the BBC over renewing its £3 million-a-year TV rights deal. The Guardian reports that the national broadcaster may be looking to lower the price for athletics coverage, after years of crises and […]
Eleven Sports awarded Belgian football rights
Negotiations will continue despite Eleven Sports gaining the rights to show Belgian professional football. Eleven Sports has been allocated exclusive domestic media rights to show the Belgian Pro league, Super Cup, Belgian Cup, and Women’s Super League from the 2020-2021 season until 2025. The General Assembly of the Pro League agreed to the reported €103 […]
Premier League exec director on why not to go D2C
Any move by the Premier League to go direct-to-consumer (D2C) will present significant challenges, reveals exec director William Bush Premier League executive director William Bush has revealed some of the barriers to entry to launching its own global D2C service. It follows the Premier League announcing plans to make its first moves into OTT, with […]
C4 head of sport champions free-to-air/pay TV partnerships
Channel 4 head of sport, Pete Andrews used the Westminster Media Forum Sports Broadcasting event to showcase the benefits of free-to-air/pay TV partnerships Speaking at the Westminster Media Forum Event on Sports Broadcasting on Tuesday, C4 head of sport Pete Andrews made clear his support of partnering with pay TV providers for flagship sporting events. […]
DCMS plans greater diversity in ‘listed’ sports events for free-to-air TV
The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) reveals plans for greater diversity in listed sports events. Talking at the Westminster Media Forum Sports Broadcasting event this morning, Alastair Jones, head of UK television policy at DCMS, revealed plans to add a number of women’s and disability sports to the list of ‘crown jewel’ […]
Premier League reveals plan to kick off OTT streaming service
The Premier League is aiming to stream its matches on a Netflix-style OTT platform, new chief executive Richard Masters has revealed. The league is looking to bypass its usual rights deals to sell coverage directly to consumers – as predicted by tech and media analyst Paolo Pescatore in Broadcast Sport last year. Masters divulged that […]
Endeavor takes minority stake in SailGP
Deal values global sailing league at £155m ($200m) Sports and entertainment giant Endeavor has acquired a minority stake in SailGP, in a deal that values the global sailing league at £155m ($200m) after its first season. SailGP takes place in harbours around the globe and culminates with a $1 million (£770,000) winner-takes-all match race. Rival […]
BBC and ITV ‘confident’ of retaining Six Nations
Tender process for next rights cyle opens next month The BBC and ITV are confident of retaining the rights to the Six Nations when the tender process for the next rights cycle begins next month, according to a Daily Mail report. The Mail said that new investors CVC Capital Partners had hoped to take some […]
Channel 5 and WWE wrestle a deal
ViacomCBS secures UK’s first free-to-air highlights of the sport Wrestling highlights are coming to free-to-air in the UK for the first time after WWE secured a partnership with Channel 5 owner ViacomCBS. From February, C5 will air a one-hour version of the Raw programme on Sunday mornings at 10:30am, with SmackDown highlights will be broadcast in the same slot […]
StarTimes wins Formula E rights for Africa
Formula E races will be screened in 37 countries across the continent StarTimes has picked up the TV rights to the rest of the Formula E Championship season. It will screen races live across its linear and digital channels in Africa. The new broadcast partnership brings Formula E to viewers in 37 countries, including South […]
BT Sport to show two live NHL games a week
Broadcaster is to sub-licence the matches from Premier Sports BT Sport has picked up the rights to the National Hockey League (NHL) and will now show two live games each week. The broadcaster says it will air a game most weekends during ‘UK primetime hours’. It will also broadcast Stanley Cup finals and the All-Star […]
BT Sport wins rights to Fury vs Wilder rematch
Broadcaster trumps Sky’s reported £10m bid BT Sport has won the UK television rights for Tyson Fury’s rematch with Deontay Wilder, beating off a reported bid of more than £10m by Sky Sports Box Office. BT Sport Box Office’s coverage from Las Vegas on February 22nd will be available not only to their regular customers but […]
Eleven Sports extends Cage Warriors deal
Acquires live rights for Belgium, Italy and Luxembourg Eleven Sports has acquired live rights to Cage Warriors fights in Belgium, Luxembourg and Italy in 2020 and 2021. The deal marks the extension of an existing partnership between Eleven and promotion outfit MMA. Over the past three years Eleven has broadcast every Cage Warriors fight night […]
Ascot hires HBA Media to handle global media rights
Five year deal for international rights takes effect this month Ascot Racecourse has appointed international horseracing media rights agency HBA Media to market its global media rights. HBA Media will be responsible for the distribution of Ascot’s non-betting international media rights portfolio, including Royal Ascot, as well as all Flat and National Hunt Racing, excluding […]
EDGEsport expands distribution to 50 countries
Action sports channel strikes broadcast deals around the world EDGEsport, the 24/7 action sports TV channel owned and operated by IMG, has secured a number of new broadcast and distribution agreements. New deals include Xumo and Stirr in the US, Samsung TV+ in the US and the UK, Youku in China and the launch of […]
Discovery acquires Golf Channel Latin America
Broadcaster adds to golf portfolio with pay-TV acquisition Discovery has bolstered its golf media business in Latin America with the acquisition of pay-service Golf Channel Latin America. The channel was bought from Simple Networks LLC and Fornaluz Productions, S.A., an affiliate of Inversiones Bahia. The acquisition adds to Discovery’s global portfolio that includes digital platform GOLFTV, […]
BT Sport retains Champions League rights in £1.2bn deal
Broadcaster fended off bids from ITV and Sky BT Sport has retained the rights to broadcast Champions League games for another three seasons in a deal worth £1.2 billion. The new deal is worth £400m a year, slightly up on the 2018-2021 rights cycle which is worth £394m a year. As such, UEFA has protected […]