ESPN lowers offer for Argentinian football rights – report

International sports broadcaster ESPN has lowered its offer for rights to Argentina’s Primera División, the top tier of football in the country, according to La Nacion.

The Argentinian newspaper said ESPN has made a revised offer worth between 2.3 billion pesos (€137.9m/$144.4m) and 2.5 billion pesos per year following a meeting with leaders of some Primera Division clubs.

The proposal is said to be closer to that put forward by US media companies Fox and Turner, who are said to be the preferred choice of the Argentinian government. Fox and Turner have not moved from an initial offer worth a basic 2.2 billion pesos per year, which was lodged in November.

Clubs are said to have demanded 3.5 billion pesos per year for the rights, plus additional revenue based on a number of different factors.

The Argentinian championship is set to resume on February 3, with a new rights deal having yet to be agreed.