Pan-European sports broadcaster Eurosport has acquired rights to the NextGen Series, a new tournament for young players from leading European professional teams, for four years, in a four-year deal from 2012-13 to 2015-16.
Eurosport will show a minimum of 18 live matches in the first year of the deal including games from the group stages, play-offs, quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final. Eurosport’s coverage begins with the Tottenham Hotspur v Barcelona group stage fixture on September 13.
The NextGen Series features 24 of European football’s biggest clubs, including Chelsea, Arsenal, Juventus, Borussia Dortmund, and the winners of last season’s inaugural competition, Inter Milan.
Julien Bergeaud, director of broadcasting and programmes for Eurosport Group said: “The NextGen Series is an exciting property added to our international youth football offering. We have broadcast the best Fifa and Uefa national team youth competitions for many years and now we have the best youth offer for clubs. We look forward to bringing the next generation of world-class footballers to our viewers in Europe.”
The deal was brokered by Future Media Services on behalf of the NextGen Series.