Premier League Pledges Live Football For All

The Premier League yesterday pledged that it will forge deals with broadcasters that will make live coverage of football games available on as many channels as possible, including terrestrial.

The statement was made by the League’s chief executive, Peter Leaver, against accusations by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) that the Premier Leagues is operating as a cartel along with BSkyB and the BBC. The OFT is taking the League to the Restrictive Practices Court on the grounds that television rights for clubs’ games are being sold off collectively and to the highest bidder, and that this operates against the public interest. The League, however, claims that the business of selling broadcasting rights would become chaotic if the OFT wins the case and clubs are allowed to negotiate with broadcasters individually.

At present, live games are only available on Sky’s pay-TV sports channels, with highlights shown later in the week on the BBC. However, this £670 million contract with the Premier League expires in 2001 after which Leaver intends the League to be platform universal. This means Premiership games should be available live across all platforms.

The case is due to begin in the Restrictive Practices Court on 12 January. It is understood that the legal fees for the case have already cost the government, broadcasters and clubs around £25 million.

If the OFT wins the case there may well be a knock-on effect with other sports such as rugby and cricket challenging collective TV broadcasting deals. The pledge is also bad news for BSkyB which has essentially built its business on the back of paid-for sports coverage with its broadcasting rights to exclusivity.

Office Of Fair Trading: 0171 211 8000 Premier League: 0171 262 4542