Formula One chief executive Bernie Ecclestone has rejected a request by the BBC for the UK public-service broadcaster to renegotiate its rights deal for the world championship, according to the Daily Telegraph newspaper.
Yesterday (Wednesday) the BBC announced it would cut its sports-rights budget by £35m (€49m/$53m) in 2016-17 as part of wider savings of £150m following a shortfall in funding.
The BBC’s current F1 deal through to the end of the 2018 campaign includes live coverage of 10 races per season, with UK pay-television broadcaster Sky showing live coverage of every race.
“We had a chat with them today,” Ecclestone told the newspaper on Wednesday evening. “What they would like to do is not spend as much money. They want to know if they can schedule it in different ways or pay a bit less now.
“They don't have a lot of choice because they've got a contract with us,” he added. “They're there for another three years. Beyond then, I've no idea… Definitely, we want them to carry on. Of course.”
The Daily Mail newspaper said the BBC would try to offload its live F1 rights for the remaining three years of the agreement, from 2016. Ecclestone said he had not been approached by any of the BBC’s rival broadcasters for the UK rights.