PREMIER LEAGUE matches could soon be shown on a new channel as the auctions for live rights looks set to hot up.
Top-flight chiefs are allegedly looking at offering an “expanded fifth package of games” to broadcasters.
They will include “several complete midweek rounds” plus Sunday clashes involving teams featuring in the Europa League.
And the Daily Mail claims that streaming service DAZN “are expected to target the Premier League matches currently owned by Amazon Prime” in the bidding process.
Amazon pay around £90m for 60 live matches in three seasons over the festive period currently.
But it emerged in the summer that all Sunday games will be screened for the very first time for the start of the 2025/26 campaign which has led “to greater interest from broadcasters”.
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This new update says that “Amazon were effectively given their first set of live rights at a discount by the Premier League six years ago in order to draw them into the market”.
They also got fortunate when the 2019 to 2022 domestic TV deal was extended on the same terms due to the Covid-19 pandemic, allowing them to keep screening games on the cheaper rate.
Now the Premier League are “looking for a significant increase from the current £5billion three-year domestic deal” in the next rights auction due to the number of matches available increasing to 270 from 2000.
The cheapest package available is set to be for around £300m-a-year – which has allegedly led to doubts over whether Amazon will want to fork out that much.
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But DAZN “are understood to view the expanded Amazon pack as more attainable than the primetime Saturday and Sunday packages” – with Sky Sports and TNT Sports set to retain them.
Ukrainian-born British businessman Len Blavatnik launched DAZN in 2016.
They have grown massively over recent years and expanded into a number of sports.
Now this report claims that they “are ready to make a serious bid for the Premier League’s UK rights” for the very first time.
DAZN currently broadcast our top-flight matches to viewers in Spain and the Women’s Champions League in this country.
And they also shown boxing, baseball and basketball as part of their ever-expanding portfolio.
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