Europe
MP & Silva pulls out of 18/22 World Cup rights deal in Italy
The rights in Italy to the Fifa World Cups in 2018 and 2022 have reverted to world football’s governing body after MP & Silva withdrew from its agreement to sell them, TV Sports Markets understands.
Sky Italia scores English football rights
Pay-television broadcaster Sky Italia has acquired exclusive rights in Italy to club football competition the English Premier League.
NRK renews key skiing rights
Norwegian public-service broadcaster NRK renewed two vital skiing rights deals last month, agreeing to pay decent increases for both.
Nicolas Rotkoff, entertainment and sports chief executive, Altice
Interview with Nicolas Rotkoff, chief executive of entertainment and sports for Altice, on the telco’s acquisition of English Premier League media rights in France.
Orange-Vodafone land LaLiga rights package
A joint venture between telecommunications companies Orange and Vodafone has acquired a package of rights to domestic club football in Spain under a deal worth a minimum €300m ($318m).
NC Plus, Ziggo secure Premier League coverage
Polish pay-television operator NC Plus and Dutch cable-television operator Ziggo have struck rights deals for football’s English Premier League.
Saran Media pens Turkish Volleyball Federation deal
The Saran Media agency has entered into a long-term strategic partnership with the Turkish Volleyball Federation.
Watching Brief (Vol.114) Special Focus: Motor Cycling – MotoGP World Championship
John Manning, research analyst for SportBusiness Intelligence, examines television audiences in selected European markets for motorcycling’s MotoGP World Championship
Trackchamp to stream League of Ireland games
The Football Association of Ireland has confirmed plans to stream online coverage of every game from the League of Ireland, the top division in the Republic of Ireland, outside of the country from 2016.
Premier League signs up new rights partners in Germany, Portugal
Digital sports media company Perform has acquired exclusive rights for the English Premier League in Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein, while Portuguese pay-television broadcaster Sport TV has been awarded rights for the top division of football in England.
BeIN Sports secures main package of LaLiga rights
Pay-television broadcaster beIN Sports has secured the main package of domestic rights for Spain's LaLiga, dislodging telecommunications company Telefónica as the main rights-holder for domestic club football in the country.
NOS seals Benfica rights
Portuguese telco NOS has acquired rights for matches featuring the country’s Primeira Liga top-tier football club Benfica.
Sunset+Vine secures BBC bowls production contract
UK sports production and media company Sunset+Vine has agreed a deal with public-service broadcaster the BBC to produce live coverage and highlights of the World Indoor Professional Bowls Championship.
Virgin Media chief makes fresh Premier League coverage call
UK pay-television operator Virgin Media has fired the latest shot in its campaign surrounding the broadcast of English Premier League football games by stating that the league should consider introducing a regional blackout system to allow it to show all 380 matches per season live on television.
German ice hockey league secures Latvian platform
Latvian pay-television broadcaster Best4Sport has acquired rights for the German Ice Hockey League (DEL).
BTCC hails extension to long-running ITV partnership
UK commercial broadcaster ITV has retained its exclusive rights for the British Touring Car Championship after agreeing a five-year extension to its deal with the motor racing series.
Grand National start time put back in bid to boost TV audience
Aintree Racecourse, host of UK horseracing’s showpiece event the Grand National, has confirmed that the 2016 edition of the race will start an hour later than in previous years in an effort to help increase television audience figures.
Basketball’s United League close to Match TV deal
Pan-European basketball competition the United League has reached an agreement in principle on a broadcast rights deal with Russian sports media platform Match TV, according to the tournament’s deputy chief executive Ilona Korstin.