Football: The Comcast-NBCU network acquired rights to US football’s Major League Soccer in a three-season deal, from 2012 until the end of 2014, worth $10 (€7m) to $12m per season, with Soccer United Marketing, which represents the commercial rights for MLS. Its rebranded 24-hour sports channel NBC Sports Network will broadcast live 38 regular-season games, three play-off games and two national team matches per season. The main NBC network will broadcast two regular-season games, two play-off games and two national team matches. The deal also includes the internet rights. Under the league’s previous agreement, pay-television channel Fox Soccer Channel paid about $8m per season.
Football: The Forthnet Group, which owns Greek pay-television broadcaster Nova and commercial broadcaster Alpha, extended its rights for the Greek Superleague for three seasons, until the end of the 2014-15 season. Local media said the deal was worth €177.4m ($255.5m). The deal covers the matches of all clubs in the league. It includes rights on television, radio, internet and mobile, in Greece, Cyprus and Albania. Forthnet said it would increase the number of matches broadcast in high definition.
Football: Danish pay-television broadcaster TV2 Sport acquired the rights for matches from the 2011 season of the Brazilian league. TV2 Sport will show two matches this weekend, then one match per week after that.
Football: Bulgarian state broadcaster Bulgarian National Television and commercial broadcaster TV7 acquired the rights to Bulgarian football’s first division in a one-season deal, worth BGN6m (€3m/$4m), with TV7 paying about BGN4m and BNT paying BGN2m, from the Bulgarian Football Union and the first division clubs. Each broadcaster will show one match per week, with BNT having the first pick. In the last deal the BTV Media Group paid BGN6.4m for the league’s rights.
Football: UK pay-television broadcaster ESPN acquired rights for several European football competitions for the 2011-12 season. These are: the Italian Serie A, the Coppa Italia, the Italian Super Cup, the Russian Premier League and the Dutch Eredivisie. ESPN will show at least two matches per week from Serie A.
Football: Portugal’s Worldcom agency, representing Benfica TV, the club channel of the Portuguese Liga club, agreed a two-year deal, from 2011 to 2012, for the Copa Sudamericana, with the Traffic Sports agency.
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