North America

US pay-television broadcaster beIN Sports has acquired rights for two friendly matches over football’s European winter break.

US satellite-television provider DirecTV has sealed a multi-year distribution deal with the Walt Disney media company covering authenticated online video services for a number of broadcasters, including pay-television sports channel ESPN.

Canadian pay-television broadcasters TLN and Univision Canada have acquired Spanish-language rights to the 2015 Pan American Games multi-sport event, which will be held in Toronto next year.

North America’s National Lacrosse League has agreed rights deals for its 2015 season with US sports broadcasters Universal Sports Network and ESPN, along with Canadian pay-television broadcaster TSN, and will launch a new online subscription platform.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial arts series has awarded rights in Canada to pay-television broadcasters TSN, RDS and Fight Network.

US cable-television operator Time Warner Cable is set to introduce a new subscription fee for sports programming, according to the Charlotte Observer.

Canadian pay-television sports broadcaster TSN and French-language sister network RDS, along with pay-television broadcaster beIN Sports Canada, have acquired rights to the Uefa Champions League and Europa League club football competitions.

Major League Soccer expansion franchise New York City FC has announced a multi-year agreement to make regional pay-television sports broadcaster Yes Network its exclusive local television partner ahead of its 2015 debut in the North American club football competition.

The Orlando City franchise has struck a rights deal with local broadcaster WOFL-TV FOX 35 ahead of its entrance into North America’s Major League Soccer.

WLS-TV/ABC7 Chicago, a local television station owned by the ABC network in the US, has acquired rights to games featuring Major League Baseball franchise the Chicago Cubs.

US sports broadcaster Universal Sports Network has reached an agreement with the Association of Surfing Professionals to provide live or same-day coverage of its remaining events in 2014.

Pay-television broadcaster ESPN is to deliver coverage of the new US College Football Playoff collegiate American football competition to audiences in Europe via ESPN Player, its live and on-demand sports streaming service.

US networks CBS, ESPN, Fox and NBC, along with the IMG and WME agencies, have joined forces to apply for the dismissal of a legal action brought by a group of college American football and basketball players, claiming it would mean “chaos” for sports broadcasting.

Major League Baseball has confirmed the appointment of Rob McGlarry as the new president of its MLB Network pay-television service.

US satellite-television company Dish Network has agreed a multi-year extension to continue its carriage of the CBS network’s various stations and cable channels, including the CBS Sports Network pay-television service.

US pay-television broadcaster ESPN has extended a rights deal for the 2015 edition of the annual Collegiate Bowl American football game.