Mediapro has been confirmed as the winner of global media rights to Bolivia’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers, adding to its collection of qualifiers in the region.
As reported by SportBusiness Media in December, the Mediapro agency will pay the Federación Boliviana de Fútbol a minimum of $12m (€10.6m) for the rights. It will pay a further $1m should Bolivia qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Mediapro, which also holds international rights to Chile’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers, beat competition from the Full Play agency and internet company Servisky. Full Play bid $8.35m for global rights to Bolivia’s 2022 qualifiers. Servisky, which holds global rights to Ecuador’s 2022 qualifiers, bid $9.605m.
Full Play held international rights to Bolivia’s 2018 World Cup qualifiers and had a matching rights clause in its contract. However, the agency made no attempt to better its offer.
Mediapro’s deal – as with all qualifier deals agreed individually with football federations – includes home qualifiers only. Mediapro will receive rights to all nine Bolivia’s home qualifiers.
Mediapro and the FBF have yet to finalise a payment schedule and sign a contract, but this is understood to be a formality.
There are now just two South American football federations yet to sell their 2022 World Cup qualifier rights – Uruguay and Venezuela. Rights to Venezuela’s home qualifiers were previously expected to be sold first, but the country’s worsening political and economic crisis has ceased plans for a sales process.