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Features
British & Irish Lions media value holds up in UK, Ireland in Sky renewal
The British & Irish Lions touring side maintained the value of its media rights in the UK and Ireland in a deal with pay-television broadcaster Sky for next year’s tour of South Africa.
Premiership Rugby seen in tricky spot after apparent rejection of BT offer
Premiership Rugby, operator of the top division of English rugby union, is entering the final season of its domestic rights deal with BT with no clear plan for the forthcoming cycle after rejecting a robust renewal offer, industry sources told SportBusiness Media.
BT’s short-term Turkish Süper Lig deal is taster for longer-term contract
UK telco BT’s acquisition of Turkish Süper Lig rights for the remainder of the 2019-20 season is a ‘toe-in-the-water’ ahead of a potential longer-term agreement, SportBusiness Media understands.
Extreme E negotiates one-year break clause in BBC rights deal
Extreme E, the electric SUV off-road racing series, has secured a one-year break clause in a two-year media-rights deal in the UK with public broadcaster the BBC, SportBusiness Media understands.
Six Nations pauses media-rights sales in face of Covid-19 pandemic
Six Nations Rugby, the organising body of the annual national team tournament, has paused the sales process for the next cycle of domestic and international rights to the Six Nations and Autumn Internationals due to the widespread uncertainty caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Disney’s pivot to India-focused Hotstar strategy opened door to Sky-IPL reunion in the UK
Disney’s decision to refocus Star India’s Hotstar OTT platform on its domestic market paved the way for the return of Indian Premier League cricket rights in the UK to pay-television broadcaster Sky.
WWE gains full-spectrum UK coverage for 2020-23 cycle with Channel 5 deal
Channel 5’s free-to-air highlights deal with World Wrestling Entertainment will run for the same four-year period as WWE’s primary UK broadcast contract with BT Sport, SportBusiness Media understands.
Sky gains from BBC live golf reappraisal in Masters renewal
Sky achieved its long-held ambition of exclusive live coverage of the US Masters in the UK because its co-incumbent, the BBC, decided live golf is no longer a strategic priority.
BT looks to secure sports future with huge Champions League renewal
BT’s huge outlay for Uefa club competition rights in the 2021-24 cycle was driven by the UK telco's need to retain a viable sports broadcasting proposition.
SPFL sees robust international rights guarantee despite betting absence
The Scottish Professional Football League has secured a strong minimum guarantee from Infront for international rights to Scottish league football. The deal is robust by historical standards, given that betting streaming rights were not included.
DAZN’s ‘logical’ interest in UK launch is hard to square with commercial realities
In October, DAZN executive chairman John Skipper described the UK as “a logical DAZN market”, pinpointing three potential avenues of entry: rights to the English Premier League, boxing, and tennis. But experts and insiders surveyed by SportBusiness say DAZN should treat the UK market with caution.
UK, France may drive global Champions League revenue downturn
Uefa, European football’s governing body, could be on the verge of a sharp downturn in Champions League media-rights revenues for the 2021-24 cycle, with specific factors in the key UK and France markets exacerbating a broader price correction already anticipated for similar high-profile properties.
Sky, Channel 4 keep terms steady for three-year F1 sublicence renewal in UK
UK commercial broadcaster Channel 4’s recent Formula One sublicensing renewal with pay-television broadcaster Sky extends their relationship for another three years, until the end of 2022, with the deal value unchanged, SportBusiness Media understands.
LaLiga shifts to fee plus revenue share in Premier Sports UK, Ireland deals
Spain’s LaLiga has for the first time agreed a revenue-sharing deal for its rights in the UK and Ireland for the 2019-22 cycle. LaLiga will receive a fee from pay-television broadcaster Premier Sports, but the two parties will also share revenues in both territories from LaLiga’s dedicated channel, LaLigaTV, SportBusiness Media understands.
BBC pays blockbuster fee for Women’s Euro 2021 UK rights
The BBC has paid around ten-times more for the UK rights to the 2021 Uefa Women’s Euro than commercial broadcaster Channel 4 paid for the 2017 tournament, SportBusiness Media understands.
GolfTV threat drives Sky extension of Open rights in UK & Ireland
UK pay-television broadcaster Sky’s extension of its rights deal for The Open is an attempt to shore up its dominant position in golf in the UK and Ireland against the threat of GolfTV, the dedicated channel run by the Discovery-PGA Tour joint venture, SportBusiness Media understands.
LaLiga FTA constraints in UK, Ireland may stymie tender interest
Match-choice restrictions placed by Spain’s LaLiga on the free-to-air package in its UK and Ireland rights tenders for the 2019-22 cycle may limit interest from broadcasters, according to industry experts spoken to by SportBusiness Media.
BT benefits from incumbent Sky’s OTT concerns in WWE grab
Pay-television broadcaster BT Sport took advantage of Sky’s long-running concerns over wrestling body WWE’s OTT service to grab WWE rights in the UK and Ireland from its rival at a steep discount, SportBusiness Media understands.
English FA spurns higher pay-TV revenue for free-to-air Cup reach
The Football Association rejected a higher bid for domestic FA Cup rights for the 2021-25 cycle from incumbent pay-television broadcaster BT Sport in favour of commercial broadcaster ITV, SportBusiness Media understands, in a move that took the competition exclusively free to air in the UK.
Amazon seeks UK tennis dominance with WTA rights play
Amazon secured Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) Tour rights in the UK for the 2020-23 cycle with a bid nearly 60 per cent higher than incumbent pay-television broadcaster BT Sport's current fee, SportBusiness Media understands, as the tech and ecommerce giant moves to establish a dominant position in UK tennis broadcasting.
Women’s motorsport series goes for ‘reach over reward’ in inaugural season
W Series, the all-female motorsport competition, is prioritising exposure over revenue in its media-rights strategy for the series’ inaugural year, it has told SportBusiness Media, although it would be difficult for the series to adopt any other approach, according to industry experts.
Speedway GP maintains UK income despite lack of competition in BT renewal
The value of FIM Speedway World Championship rights in the UK held up in a new three-year deal, from 2019 to 2021, despite incumbent rights-holder BT Sport facing no serious competition.
FA Cup ‘non-linear’ rights package opens door to Amazon
The FA has opened the market for FA Cup domestic rights to new competition with the inclusion of a ‘non-linear package’ – expected to attract interest from internet giant Amazon – in the tender for the 2021-22 to 2024-25 cycle, SportBusiness Media understands.
Star India’s OTT strategy in UK drives Sky IPL rights loss
Media company Star India’s plans to use the Indian Premier League to develop its Hotstar OTT platform in the UK drove pay-television broadcaster Sky’s loss of the property, SportBusiness Media understands.