Brazilian broadcaster Globo has been unable to reach an agreement with Campeonato Brasileiro Série A football club Flamengo for rights to this year’s Campeonato Carioca state championship, which gets underway on Saturday.
The two parties’ previous rights agreement expired after last year’s event and Flamengo had reportedly been seeking an improved deal for the 2020 edition.
Globo had last week expressed its willingness to negotiate a deal with Flamengo.
Flamengo said in a statement that no deal has been struck due to Globo’s insistence on sticking to the terms of an agreement that was signed in 2016. Flamengo, which won the Copa Libertadores last year, feels it is in a “new phase” compared to 2016.
Globo has said that it will not sign more lucrative deals with individual clubs, in the interests of balance. Globo will continue to carry coverage of Flamengo’s national league matches, which it shows on its SporTV and GloboEsporte.com platforms.
Flamengo is the defending champion of the Campeonato Carioca, which also features the state’s three other major clubs: Botafogo, Fluminense and Vasco da Gama.
Last week, the UOL Esporte portal reported that the state federation in Rio would lose R$18m (€3.9m/$4.3m) if Globo and Flamengo did not reach a deal. This amount would affect the 12 smaller teams in the competition, with Botafogo, Fluminense and Vasco’s payments having been previously agreed in a separate deal.