US cable-television broadcaster ESPN has acquired rights for selected teams’ games in the Liga MX and Copa MX, Mexico’s top club football league and cup competitions, respectively.
The agreement will run for three years, from 2013 to 2015, and starts immediately.
Under the deal, selected domestic matches in Mexico will be broadcast live in English on the ESPN2 and ESPNews channels, with games also shown on Spanish-language channel ESPN Deportes. ESPN’s English- and Spanish-language television and digital platforms will also show highlights of games from the two competitions.
ESPN acquired the rights from Azteca América, a division of Mexican commercial broadcaster TV Azteca, which has the domestic and international media rights to several top-tier clubs in Mexico.
ESPN said that it would be able to show more than 60 matches next season, including home league games of Cruz Azul, Jaguares, Morelia and Puebla.
Media rights are sold on a club-by-club basis in Mexico.
“Liga MX has become one of the most competitive and popular soccer leagues in Latin America with a growing number of Mexican and American star players,” Freddy Rolón, vice-president of programming and business development for ESPN Deportes, said.