SPORTFIVE leads UEFA Cup broadcast distributors

A research by Sportcal.com shows that sports marketing agency, SPORTFIVE, leads the UEFA Cup broadcast distributors by delivering 35 out of 80 clubs' matches in the UEFA Cup first round. Switzerland-based Kentaro, came in at second place, with 10 matches delivered.

UEFA Cup contenders own the broadcast rights to its home matches until the quarter-final stage of the competition, at which point, Team Marketing Agency sells all rights for UEFA.

The UEFA Cup rights are divided to three categories. First party rights are rights in the host club's domicile area and are usually sold directly by the club to a local TV station. Second party rights, which covers the rights in the opponent club's territory, and third-party rights, the rights outside both clubs' respective territories, are usually sold by sports marketing agencies on behalf of the host club.

There are 20 countries represented by SPORTFIVE in the first round, including France, Germany, Austria, Denmark, Russia, and Israel but the company does not sell any international rights for clubs from England, Spain or the Netherlands.

Five Swedish and two Swiss clubs are included in the 10 UEFA Cup first-round matches that Kentaro handles.

IMG Media has seven clubs and ties with German-based Global Sportnet, although the one club of Global Sportnet is a second-party rights. IMG Media Netherlands dominates the Dutch market by handling all five clubs.

Infront Sports and Media, including its Italian division, Infront Italy, is marketing the rights of three clubs, including Germany's Bayern Munich (only for the first round).

The Italian market is split up with a different company handling each of the four clubs.

The rights are shared in England, with Pitch International covering the home matches of Bolton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur and Kentaro and Global Sportnet covering the others.

Eight other companies cover one club each, while seven other clubs, such as Spanish club Athletico Madrid, distribute its own rights.

In terms of market share by country, SPORTFIVE would appear to have a strong hold in its two home markets (France and Germany), with four of the five competing French clubs and three of the four German clubs in its portfolio.

SPORTFIVE was bought earlier this year for EUR 865 million (USD 1.1 billion) by Lagardère group, formerly one of France's biggest defense contractors and currently the country's largest media publisher. Chief Executive Officer Arnaud Lagardere, has bought media companies to diversify from his aerospace heritage, which includes European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co., the maker of Airbus planes.

SPORTFIVE, formaly owned by investment group of Advent International, Goldman Sachs Capital Partners and RTL Group, which has headquarters in Paris and Hamburg, was an astrategic takeover for Arnaud Lagardere. Sports, and especially football rights, are strong assests for Lagardere's television broadcasting arm which includes Canal Plus.

In Lagardère's 2007 Interim Financial Report for the six months ended 30 June 2007 it was revealed that SPORTFIVE, on its first half-year in the group, has contributed EUR 210.1 million to the EUR 3.95 billion consolidated revenues.

Lagardere who decleared only last week that SPORTFIVE will become the "motor of growth for our group," has already delved through SPORTFIVE into the upcoming bidding process for the German Bundesliga rights from the 2009/10 season, scheduled to take place before year’s end.

TV operator Premiere will now face a havey competitor to contend with when the tender begins in earnest. Arena, which held the rights before sublicensing them to Premiere, has already announced that it does not intend to take part in the bidding process.

SPORTFIVE already operates in Germany its own sports channel, Sportdigital.tv, which was launched in January. The channel is currently only available as a internet TV offering and will be distributed from 1 October via satellite as part of SES Astra’s digital platform. As Premiere and entavio use the same technical infrastructure, Sportfive’s channel could easily target Premiere’s existing DTH subscriber base.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.