The pay-TV network cancels SIC’s € 18 million offer to retain the rights.
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- A new three-year agreement between the 2021/22 and 2023/24 seasons
- Eleven likely to sublicense a free plan
Pay-TV network Eleven has renewed its UEFA Champions League broadcast partnership in Portugal for three more seasons until 2023/24.
The agreement, which runs from next season, also covers the annual Super Cup, the traditional curtain raiser where the winners of the Champions League and the secondary Europa League face off against each other.
The contract covers 138 Champions League games per season, as well as highlights and magazine programming, with games being broadcast via Eleven’s linear network and the OTT (over-the-top) platform.
According to reports in Portugal, Eleven has resisted a strong offer from commercial broadcaster SIC to retain the rights. Financial news outlet Eco reported that SIC was ready to offer 18 million euros ($ 21.4 million) for the three-year contract.
Based on the current cast, Eleven will likely sublicense a set of free Champions League rights in the next cycle in order to comply with Portuguese regulations. The TVI commercial network got this package ahead of the 2018/19 campaign, broadcasting one match per matchweek with a Portuguese team and the final.
Eleven has replaced Pay TV rival Sport TV as UEFA’s Portuguese broadcast partner for the Champions League for the three-year cycle that ends at the end of the current 2020/21 season.
Sport TV retained its rights in the Europa League, with one match per matchweek and the highlights also currently being broadcast on SIC.
