Benfica Tv

mikeym

The first club in the world that will broadcast its own football matches launched today.


http://asia.eurosport.com/football/european-football/2013/benfica-pay-tv-set-to-broadcast-club-s-league-matches_sto3824634/story.shtml

Benfica pay TV set to broadcast club's league matches

Benfica TV became a pay channel on Monday and will be the sole broadcaster for the club's Portuguese Premier League home matches - a groundbreaking move among Europe's top clubs.

On top of a fee paid for a basic cable TV package, fans in Portugal will have to pay some 10 euros (£8.70) per month to watch the Lisbon club's matches played at the Luz stadium on television.

Club President Luis Filipe Vieira hailed the initiative as "historic" and said the deal meant that "Benfica became the first club in the world to fully exploit its TV rights".

Fans can subscribe to the channel through the country's two largest cable operators: Portugal Telecom and Zon. Angolan cable operator Zap will also offer it.

A club spokesman said Benfica were the first big European club to screen league games on their own pay TV channel.

Earlier this year, Benfica reached a deal with the English Premier League for exclusive screening rights in Portugal of the competition over the next three seasons.

Until now, some 70 percent of the broadcasting rights revenues estimated at 75 million euros (£64.2m) per season have gone to the "big-three" football clubs - Benfica, Sporting and Porto.

As in neighbouring Spain, television contracts in Portugal are negotiated on a club-by-club basis, unlike in the English Premier League and Italy's Serie A, where collective bargaining deals are struck.

Reuters

I wonder will Celtic or other top clubs that dominate the minor leagues around Europe will follow suit?

lertsnim

Can't see it happening in England for a long time anyway. Would be nice though to be able to subscribe to see just your own teams games.

icdg

mikeym wrote: »

I wonder will Celtic or other top clubs that dominate the minor leagues around Europe will follow suit?

The result of Celtic following suit is that, in the continuing absence of Rangers, they would be the only club in what was the SPL (seems to be a bit of confusion over what it will be called next year...) who would have a TV rights deal for all their games. The others could only sell their home matches against Celtic. Scotland of course is an extreme example, nonethless the ultimate outcome in many smaller leagues - the big clubs would have deals while the smaller clubs would only be on TV when they played the bigger ones.

As for if the Premier League tried it - well if you're angry enough at there being three Premier League rights holders, what if there were up to twenty?????

Digifriendly

First line of first post is not strictly correct as Liverpool, Chelsea and Man. Utd all broadcast delayed coverage of their teams matches.

lertsnim

Digifriendly wrote: »

First line of first post is not strictly correct as Liverpool, Chelsea and Man. Utd all broadcast delayed coverage of their teams matches.

They are not the sole broadcaster of their games. That is what Benfica TV will become.