iCITY, the preferred bidder for the legacy uses of the Press and Broadcast Centres on the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, has confirmed the completion of the deal with BT Sport to base its new sports channels in the north end of the former International Broadcast Centre.

BT Sport has agreed to become a long term anchor tenant of iCITY, as it seeks to contribute to the Olympic legacy, by providing jobs and opportunities for the local community.

The deal will see BT Sport broadcast live Premier League football from iCITY from August 2013. The new Olympic Park studios will be a production hub for all the sports content that BT will offer and some programmes will be hosted from the studios.

BT will refit part of the building to house three TV studios, a control centre, 20 edit suites and an audience holding area. This work will begin from February 1st.

Gavin Poole, CEO of iCITY, said the deal reflected the determination of everyone involved, including BT Sport, Delancey, Infinity SDC, and the London Legacy Development Corporation, to deliver an Olympic legacy of employment and enterprise as quickly as possible. “The arrival of BT Sport represents a significant milestone in iCITY’s delivery of its legacy commitments, and we look forward to welcoming BT Sport to iCITY,” he added.

BT recently appointed Mark Wardle as Programme Director to ensure operational readiness across BT Group for BT Sport. He was previously Programme Director on multicast delivery (live TV on BT Vision) as well as the Olympic video network for London 2012.

At BT Media and Broadcast, Mark was Technology and Operations director for five years, responsible for BT’s global broadcast and satellite business.
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