Europe
Russian Football Union agrees Channel One rights deal
Russian state broadcaster Channel One has agreed a deal with the Russian Football Union for rights to national team matches.
L’Équipe 21 to cover France’s European Badminton Championships
The French Badminton Federation (FFBaD) has agreed a broadcast deal with digital-terrestrial television channel L’Équipe 21 for its staging of the sport’s 2016 European Championships.
SIS gallops on with Irish horse racing partnership
Satellite Information Services, a provider of end-to-end products and services to the betting and broadcast industries, has extended a rights distribution deal with the Horse Racing Ireland and Association of Irish Racecourses bodies.
Eurosport renews Superbikes
International sports broadcaster Eurosport maintained exclusive rights in the UK as it renewed its deal for the Superbike World Championship motorcycling series.
Sky Euro 2016 and Copa deals not a change of strategy
Sky Italia’s investment in this summer’s two major football tournaments – Euro 2016 and the Copa América Centenario – came as a surprise as the broadcaster had said it has abandoned its strategy of acquiring rights to major events. It does not, however, represent a U-turn – the deals were last-minute, opportunistic acquisitions.
UFC bolsters Fight Pass with rights and exclusivity
The Ultimate Fighting Championship bolstered its UFC Fight Pass OTT subscription service last month, maintaining its position as the world’s most content-rich combat channel.
Watching Brief (Vol.119) Special Focus: American Football – Super Bowl
John Manning, research analyst for SportBusiness Intelligence, looks at television audiences for Super Bowl 50
Promax deal widens Eleven’s reach in Poland
International sports broadcaster Eleven Sports Network has further broadened its reach in the Polish market by reaching a carriage agreement with cable operator Promax.
TV3 nets sublicensing deal with RTÉ for Euro 2016 rights
Irish public-service broadcaster RTÉ has reached an agreement to sub-licence commercial broadcaster TV3 rights to 22 of the 51 games at the Uefa Euro 2016 national team football tournament.
World Superbikes broadens UK exposure with ITV deal
The Superbike World Championship (WorldSBK) motorcycling series has agreed a rights deal with UK commercial broadcaster ITV.
DHB set for IHF talks over Handball Worlds rights
The German Handball Association (DHB) has said it will meet with the International Handball Federation in mid-March in a bid to secure free-to-air coverage for the 2017 Men’s World Championship.
Eurosport Player to show top badminton action
International sports broadcaster Eurosport has secured an exclusive digital streaming rights deal with the Badminton World Federation (BWF).
TV3 extends F1 coverage deal in Spain
Catalan public-service broadcaster TV3 has struck a sublicensing rights deal with Spanish telco Telefónica to show coverage of the Formula One motor racing world championship.
Football League launches review of digital operations
The English Football League has commenced a review of its collective digital platforms through its wholly owned digital subsidiary Football League Interactive (FLi).
Eurosport to cover badminton’s All England Open
International sports broadcaster Eurosport has acquired rights in the UK and Ireland to this year’s All England Open Badminton Championships, which begin next week.
Sport1 seals rights for Germany handball games
German sports broadcaster Sport1 has struck a rights deal with the German Handball Federation for coverage of two friendly matches featuring the country’s national team.
Sky remains in the mix for rights as GAA Congress rejects motion
Pay-television broadcaster Sky will retain the ability to extend its rights deal with the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland after a motion to make all televised championship games available free to air was defeated.
Serie A clubs approve rights distribution model
Italian Serie A football clubs have approved the distribution of media-rights revenues for the 2015-16 season.