Italian clubs eye €5.5bn football rights deal
October 9, 2013
Italy’s Serie A football clubs are considering a proposal to sell their TV rights from the 2015-6 to 2020-1 seasons for €5.49 billion.
According to reports, sports and media agency Infront has tabled a bid underwriting the league’s income from televised matches for six seasons. It would guarantee €900 million to €930 million a year for the league.
After years of decline in media revenues, stiff competition between Italy’s existing pay-TV broadcasters, Sky Italia and Mediaset, has revived the market. Indeed, their substantial contribution to overall UEFA Champions League broadcast-rights underpinned the €65.3 million Juventus earned from last season’s Champions League tournament. This was significantly more than the eventual winners, Bayern Munich, who took €55 million.
Now with the Infront offer, Serie A clubs stand to extract still more from their TV rights. The long-term nature of the Infront proposal would also bring added certainty of income, assisting clubs in their business planning when considering stadium and player investments.
Infront will sell on the rights to Sky and Mediaset.