Pay-television broadcaster Sky has reached a deal to acquire exclusive rights for the Austrian Bundesliga, the top division of football in the country.
The deal, which covers domestic and international rights, will run for four seasons, from 2018-19 to 2021-22.
The Bundesliga announced that “a binding licence agreement” with Sky will be concluded shortly.
The value of the deal has not been disclosed, but the league said that the agreement would guarantee a 40-per-cent increase in the rights income in comparison with the current cycle.
Hans Rinner, the president of the Austrian Bundesliga, said that the league is “well on the way to extending the proven partnership with Sky” and added: “The significant revenue increase is good news for Austrian football and therefore secures future development.”
Sky will have rights to 195 games from the 12-team league and will also produce the coverage.
The broadcaster, which will also show online clips, will additionally sublicense rights on to a free-to-air channel for regular highlights and live coverage of four games per season.
Three games will be shown on Saturdays and three matches will be broadcast on Sundays.
In April, the Bundesliga confirmed that it would revamp its distribution system for media-rights revenues from the 2018-19 season to be more focused on club performance.
Net profit from the new deal will see the basic amount distributed evenly to all clubs fall from 40 per cent to 30 per cent, while distribution according to the usage of Austrian players will be cut from 40 per cent to 20 per cent. Thirty per cent of revenue will be distributed according to the sporting performance of teams, while 20 per cent will be allocated based on attendances at games.