BSkyB will be able to secure the rights to Premiership football for a significantly reduced amount when the current deal comes up for renewal. That is the conclusion of a study from business information providers Sportcal out this week.
The report predicts that Rupert Murdoch’s satellite broadcaster will be the only bidder for live matches next season and in the absence of competition will be able to slash up to 35% off the current price. The existing deal worth £1.1 billion over three years was negotiated in June 2000 when NTL and ITV Digital were also involved in the bidding process.
Since those heady days, NTL has run up huge debts and been forced to undergo restructuring while ITV Digital went into liquidation owing £178 million to the Football League. The current malaise is symptomatic of the situation across Europe where pay-TV operators are cutting costs after having overspent on football rights in recent years.
The only alternative to a one horse race in the UK would be for the Premiership to set up its own channel. However, the report suggests that this would be even less profitable than a cut-price deal with Sky. Based on an anticipated 3.5 million subscribers paying £157 per year for access, Sportcal estimates that a Premiership channel would make annual profits of £264 million. In essence, that means that each club in the top flight would have to settle for £145 million less per season than they do now.
