The International Handball Federation has received a record offer from Qatari pay-television operator Al Jazeera for the next cycle of global rights to its World Championships, according to German magazine Handball Time.
The magazine said Al Jazeera has submitted a bid for the rights spanning 2014 to 2017 which is worth around CHF100m (€81.1m/$110.2m).
The contract encompasses rights to the 2015 and 2017 men’s World Championships in Qatar and France respectively, along with the 2015 and 2017 women’s events in Denmark and Germany. Al Jazeera is also said to be offering to cover some youth and junior-level tournaments.
IHF president Hassan Moustafa confirmed Al Jazeera has made an offer for the rights, but would not comment on the value of the proposed deal.
He said: “We received five offers from different TV stations. Al Jazeera is one of the bidders but we are not yet informed about the amount of every offer.”
The IHF’s marketing department is set to discuss the offers at its next board meeting, which will take place at the women’s 2013 World Championships hosted by Serbia from December 6-22.
The Ufa Sports agency is the current World Championships rights-holder, for 2011 and 2013. Handball Time said its contract is worth around CHF60m.