Pay-television sports broadcaster ESPN has added to its portfolio of football rights for next season in the UK and Ireland with three renewals and a new deal, adding to its renewal for the German Bundesliga earlier this week.
ESPN has renewed its rights deals for live coverage of Italy’s Serie A with the MP & Silva agency, the Dutch Eredivisie and the Russian Premier League, and it agreed a new deal for the French Ligue 1.
ESPN’s Jeroen Oerlemans said: “The addition of France’s Ligue 1 and the renewal of Serie A, Dutch Eredivisie and Russian Premier League means ESPN is the home to the very best domestic league football from across Europe. Our portfolio of live football on ESPN is combined with our growing range of sport, which includes rugby, cricket, darts, motorsport, UFC, boxing and more.”
The deals follow ESPN’s renewal of German Bundesliga rights for the next three seasons, from 2012-13 to 2014-15.
The new deals surprised some market experts as ESPN’s recent loss of English Premier League rights after this season was expected to hasten the broadcaster’s withdrawal from the UK market.