The Movistar Plus broadcast platform of Spanish telco Telefónica has acquired exclusive rights in Spain for football’s English Premier League.
Although a deal is yet to be formally confirmed by Telefónica, Movistar Plus will hold the rights to the top division of English football for three seasons, from 2016-17 to 2018-19.
Telefónica’s move for Premier League rights came just before pay-television broadcaster beIN Sports last week secured the main package of domestic rights for Spain’s LaLiga, dislodging the telco as the main rights-holder for domestic club football in the country. DTS Distribuidora de Televisión Digital, which is operated by Telefónica, acquired a smaller package of rights.
Through Mediaproducción, beIN Sports acquired package six, which included eight LaLiga games per match day, with one of those matches featuring either Real Madrid or Barcelona. The package also included one ‘Clásico’ match between Real Madrid and Barcelona each season plus “pay-per-view” rights for the Copa del Rey knockout tournament, according to beIN Sports.
The deal is worth €1.9bn ($2bn) over three seasons, from 2016-17 to 2018-19, LaLiga said. DTS snapped up package five for €750m over the same three-season period. Through the DTS deal, Telefónica subsidiary Movistar will have the first choice of one match per round of fixtures.