Lega Serie A, the organising body of the top division of Italian club football, is reportedly close to an agreement with Mediapro to return the advance payment the Spanish agency made for its rights deal that collapsed earlier this year.
Italian sports newspaper Tuttosport said the lawyers of the two parties are closing in on an agreement that would see the €64m ($72.7m) returned in full to Mediapro. The move by the Lega is said to have been made in order to maintain good relations with Mediapro for when its broadcast rights next go to market.
In June, pay-television broadcaster Sky Italia and digital media company DAZN Group acquired domestic rights to Serie A in deals worth a total of €973.3m per season, from 2018-19 to 2020-21. The announcement by the Lega followed a troubled year-long sales process.
The Lega cancelled an existing agreement with Mediapro in May amid regulatory issues. Lega Serie A in February accepted an offer for its domestic broadcast rights from Mediapro for three seasons, from 2018-19 to 2020-21. The Lega said the agency had made an offer worth €1,050,001,000 per season, exceeding the minimum revenue target of €1.05bn that had been set, but the deal had been met with challenges ever since it was struck.