Skip to main content

Premier League has to sell remaining packages to Sky and BT

The English Premier League is reportedly poised to sell its last two remaining domestic media rights packages for the next cycle to incumbent broadcasters Sky and BT Sport.

The news comes after rights packages F and G - covering a total of 40 live midweek and bank holiday matches per season between 2019 and 2022 - went unsold during an auction in February that saw Sky and BT pay a combined £4.464 billion for the five main packages.

The initial bidding saw Sky pocket four of the five packages to claim a toal of 128 matches, with BT purchasing 32 matches per season. According to league rules, Sky is only able to acquire one of the last two packages since no broadcaster can purchase more than 148 matches per season in total.

Reports suggest clubs are now willing to accept a cut-price bid for the remaining rights after Premier League executive chairman Richard Scudamore misread long-mooted interest from the likes of social media giants Amazon, Twitter and Facebook - all of whom were the subject of widespread media speculation and strongly linked with potential offers.

While it is not yet known how much will be generated by the sales of the final two packages, it is anticipated that the Premier League's total income from domestic rights for the next three-year period will drop significantly compared to its current agreements, which were worth some £5.136 billion in total.

That shortfall will be offset by sales of overseas media rights, however, with increases expected in most major markets. To date, several international broadcasters have snapped up Premier League rights beyond 2019, including NBC in the US, ESPN in Brazil and SuperSport in sub-Saharan Africa.

Labels

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Threat of financial calamity removed from Baggies

West Bromwich Albion had effectively been in decline ever since the club was sold to a Chinese consortium in August 2016, paying a figure north of £200m to buy former owner Jeremy Peace’s stake. Controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai’s ownership was fairly disastrous for the club, but his unloved tenure finally came to an end after Bilkul Football WBA, a company ultimately owned by Florida-based entrepreneur Shilen Patel and his father Dr Kiran Patel, acquired an 87.8% shareholding in West Bromwich Albion Group Limited, the parent company of West Bromwich Albion Football Club. This change in ownership was urgently required, due to the numerous financial problems facing West Brom, including growing high-interest debt and serious cash flow concerns, following years of no investment from the former owner. Indeed, West Brom’s auditors had already rung the alarm bell in the 2021/22 accounts when they cast doubt on the club’s ability to continue as a going concern without making player s...
1 comment
Read more

Spurs to sell minority stake

Tottenham Hotspur is in talks to sell a minority stake in a deal that could value it at up to £3.75 billion and pave the way for Joe Lewis and his family to sever ties with the Premier League football club. Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is seeking an investment that values the club at between £3.5 billion and £3.75 billion, including debt. While the terms of any deal have not been finalised, City sources expect Spurs to sell about 10 per cent. The club is being advised by bankers from Rothschild on the sale. Tottenham wants to raise fresh capital for new player signings and to help fund the development of an academy for its women’s team, as well as a 30-storey hotel next to its north London stadium. The financier Amanda Staveley, who brokered the deal for Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to take over Newcastle United, is understood to be among the parties to have expressed an interest in Tottenham. Staveley’s fund, PCP Capital Partners, has raised about £500 million to ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Millwall punch above their weight

Millwall’s season was overshadowed by the tragic death of owner John Berylson following a car accident. The American had been an exemplary owner, beloved by the fans for his leadership, passion and generosity. Millwall’s finances had been pretty good during his tenure, which we shall explore by looking at the most recent accounts from the 2022/23 season, when the club narrowly missed out on a place in the play-offs after finishing 8th. Millwall’s pre-tax loss slightly reduced from £12.6m to £12.2m, as revenue rose £0.8m (4%) from £18.6m to a club record £19.4m and player sales improved from a £0.1m loss to £2.5m profit. However, other operating income dropped from by £1.1m from £1.3m to £0.2m, while operating expenses increased £1.7m (5%) from £31.6m to £33.3m. The main driver of the revenue increase was broadcasting, which rose £1.1m (12%) from £9.1m to £10.2m, though match day was also up £0.4m (7%) from £5.8m to £6.2m. In contrast, commercial fell £0.7m (19%) from £3.7m to £3....
Post a Comment
Read more