Six of the UK's top sports governing bodies have renewed their commitment to enable their events to be available on free-to-air television.
The national governing bodies of cricket, football, golf, tennis, rugby league and rugby union have re-signed the Voluntary Code of Conduct on the Broadcasting of Major Sporting Events, which was first established in 2009.
The England & Wales Cricket Board, Football Association, Lawn Tennis Association-All England Lawn Tennis Club, Royal & Ancient Golf Club, Rugby Football League and Rugby Football Union will continue to provide access to highlights packages, at the very least.
Under the code, the governing bodies have also committed to allocating up to 30 per cent of their media-rights income for grassroots projects.
The code of conduct was established by the Sport and Recreation Alliance, an umbrella organisation of more than 300 bodies. It is overseen by the Sports Broadcast Monitoring Committee, chaired by Sir David Scott, a former executive at UK commercial broadcaster Channel 4.
“The code makes the best sporting events available to everyone, regardless of their ability to pay,” said Scott. “It also makes clear the link between the success of these blue-riband events and a healthy participation base.”