Antitrust authority would step in over Benfica coverage, analysts say

Analysts at Portuguese bank BPI have said they would expect Portugal’s antitrust authority to force Benfica to allow all national pay-television operators to carry coverage of its matches, should the football club press ahead with plans to show them on its own channel.

Benfica said last week that it would keep its media rights for exploitation on its own basic-tier channel, Benfica TV, after deciding against selling them to a broadcaster or agency from the start of next season. The channel is currently available on the Portugal Telecom and Sonaecom pay-television platforms, but is not currently available on other pay-television operators.

The Reuters news agency reports that BPI analysts said that the club would have to make the channel widely available to avoid violating competition legislation, due to the large audiences anticipated for the coverage on Benfica TV.

“We expect the antitrust authority to step in and make sure the broadcasting of Benfica TV may be done by all pay-TV operators,” BPI said.