Telco Optus will trial the live streaming of Uefa Champions League and Europa League via social media platform Twitter and video-sharing website YouTube in what it claims is a first for football coverage in Australia.
Optus is the exclusive home of the two competitions in Australia and will transmit a total of 10 matches between February and April on the Optus Sport channels through Twitter and YouTube.
This will include six live Europa League matches on Twitter and four live Champions League matches on YouTube, starting with the live broadcast of Wednesday’s meeting between Tottenham Hotspur and Borussia Dortmund in the last 16 of the Champions League on the Optus Sport YouTube channel.
“These exciting collaborations with YouTube and Twitter mark a major opportunity to leverage the world’s biggest international club competitions and amplify our incredible live programming of these tournaments,” Optus’ head of TV and content, Corin Dimopoulos, said.
Dimopoulos added while similar types of partnerships have been rolled out overseas, it is the first time that regular competitive football matches will be made available this way in Australia.
Optus secured rights to the Champions League and Europa League under a deal signed in August.