StarTimes agrees seven-year Kenyan Premier League rights deal

Sub-Saharan African pay-television broadcaster StarTimes has agreed a long-term deal to broadcast the Kenyan Premier League from the 2020-21 season onwards.

Nick Mwendwa, president of the Football Kenya Federation (FKF), tweeted that a seven-year deal has been agreed with StarTimes worth $1.1m (€939,000) a year.

As well as rights to all matches in the top-tier Premier League, the deal will cover matches played by Kenya’s men’s and women’s national teams, along with 30 fixtures from the second-tier Super League.

Mwendwa also said that one Super League match per weekend would be shown on free-to-air television as part of the agreement.

StarTimes has also confirmed news of the acquisition via its social media accounts.

In 2017, pay-television broadcaster SuperSport opted to cancel its deal over an issue relating to the operation of the league.

The StarTimes deal has been signed after the FKF officially assumed control of the league from the KPL, a company managed and owned by top-flight clubs, last week.

The StarTimes rights agreement provides a further boost for the Kenyan Premier League after it was announced in July that online betting firm BetKing Kenya would become the new title sponsor of the league. The five-year deal is worth a total of KES1.2bn (€9.4m/$11.1m).