Rai holds on to Coppa Italia rights

Italian state broadcaster Rai has retained its rights to the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana club football tournaments after agreeing a new three-year deal, from 2015-16 to 2017-18, with Lega Serie A.

Lega Serie A last month initiated private negotiations with bidders, with Italian newspaper La Repubblica stating that Rai’s bid of €67m ($70.9m) had defeated an offer from commercial broadcaster Mediaset.

Rai has secured Package I, which includes live coverage of the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana on all platforms. The tender had set a base price for the television rights to the two competitions of €84m across the three seasons, with Rai paying around €60m for its current deal.

Telecommunications company TIM secured Package L, which comprises digital rights for the two competitions, including near-live highlights and interviews, across the same three-year period.

Lega Serie A president Maurizio Beretta said that an announcement concerning international rights to the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana would be made in the coming days.