[Moderator edited to adjust the subject line to more accurately reflect this thread's content.]
BT Sport wins exclusive rights to UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League until the end of the 2020/21 season.
I’m delighted that BT Sport will remain the exclusive UK home of all UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League football, following a competitive auction process. The rights have been secured until the end of the 2020/21 season.
This is great news for our customers as we continue to make live top tier football far more affordable than other pay-TV operators and we’re committed to giving great value for money.
What does this deal mean?
•We will broadcast up to 343 live matches every year from 2018/19 to 2020/21 from the opening rounds through to both finals.
•We have won the exclusive rights to the highlights and in-match clips from both competitions. We will use these to enhance our social media coverage to reach new audiences, by making clips, weekly highlights, UEFA’s magazine show, and both finals available for free on social media.
•We will continue to show these matches on an exclusively live basis in the UK, plus customers will now able to enjoy ‘double header’ nights for the first time, as there will be live matches at both 18:00 and 20:00 during the Group Stage.
•The UEFA Champions League is set to be even stronger from 2018/19 onwards, with a minimum of four participating teams from England, Spain, Germany and Italy now guaranteed, resulting in more games between the top European teams.
This is a great example of us investing in future growth. These rights further complement our sporting line-up, which already includes top tier football from the Premier League and FA Cup, as well as live rugby, cricket, UFC, and now boxing.
As ever we have taken a disciplined approach and we are in a strong position to monetise this investment through subscription, wholesale, commercial, and advertising revenues.
Winning with innovation
It’s through BT’s innovation we’ve taken the coverage of both competitions to new heights, and it’s why UEFA chose us.
•We were the first broadcaster in Europe to show live matches using 4K ultra high definition technology and also the first in the world to use Dolby Atmos sound.
•Our fans have been given unprecedented control of their viewing with our innovative BT Sport App.
•We also led the most social sports broadcast ever by showing both competition finals on YouTube last year, and we are excited about our future plans for the use of social media, which will engage a growing fanbase that consumes sport in different ways.
•BT has also delivered strong audiences in the UK and made its live sport available to EE customers.
This is great news for our customers and for BT
We’re thrilled to have renewed these rights to two of the best competitions in the world. I’m proud that we continue to make sporting action far more affordable for customers, helping to ensure as many people as possible can enjoy the action.
I would like to thank everyone involved across BT who have helped to make this happen. It’s a moment in the BT journey which underlines our commitment to sports broadcasting, to the future growth of our business and also to our customers.
John Petter