A boom in viewing figures in this year’s Coppa Italia helped the Italian football league, Lega Serie A, to an increase of about 65 per cent in the value of the media rights to the cup competition for the next three seasons, from 2012-13 to 2014-15.
The league will earn €24.5 million ($30.9 million) per season, against €14.85 million per season in 2010-11 and 2011-12.
The domestic rights were acquired by state broadcaster Rai for €20.5 million per season. In the last cycle the rights were worth €11.85 million per season, with Rai paying €11.25 million for the rights to the last 16 onwards and Telecom Italia Media paying about €600,000 per season for the rights to the early rounds.
Rai recorded its highest-ever audience for the final of the Coppa Italia last season, and the highest ever in Italy for a Coppa match. The average live audience for Napoli’s 2-0 victory over Juventus on Rai’s flagship channel Rai 1 was 11.586 million, an audience share of 42.44 per cent. The broadcaster also enjoyed big audiences for the semi-finals.
Marco Bianchi’s B4 agency renewed its deal for the international rights, paying €4 million per season, up from €3 million per season in the last cycle.
The deals bring the league’s media rights income for the next cycle to just over €985 million per season, with one package of free-to-air highlights rights and non-exclusive new media rights still to be sold.