Danish Superligaen club Brondby has announced that it will exit the top division of Danish football’s collective broadcast rights agreement when the current deal expires in July 2015.
The Copenhagen club’s decision comes after it failed to reach an understanding on the approach to the Superligaen’s next set of broadcast rights.
“Our desire has all the way been for a common agreement, but unfortunately it has not been possible,” Brondby chairman Aldo Petersen said. “Following the failure to reach a mutual understanding, we now need to initiate a process with the aim to investigate how Brondby, where appropriate, may sell the rights to our home games in the Superligaen. It is Brondby’s assessment at this time that such an agreement will improve the club.”
Petersen added: “We have tried in vain to promote the view that the distribution of income in the next TV deal must be more based on who is strongest amongst viewers. We do not think it's fair that a club like Brondby, with the best ratings and the most popular club on TV stations, last season was just sixth on the list of distribution of TV funds. This meant that Brondby last season had less than eight per cent of the funds allocated.”
In response, the Superligaen has said it has the backing of the league’s other 11 clubs to proceed towards negotiating a new collective rights deal from 2015 for a maximum term of six years. Superligaen director Claus Thomsen added: “The fact that 11 out of the 12 clubs can stand together on a joint sale with a long term view shows that the unity, solidarity and strategic vision in the Superligaen is really good on a widespread basis.”