ESPN wants The Premiership

[Gribz 841]

US sports cable network ESPN is "absolutely interested" in buying the UK rights to broadcast Premier League football, its president has said.

The comments by George Bodenheimer to the Financial Times signal efforts by the network to boost its European audience, analysts say.

 

BSkyB and Setanta hold the UK rights to show live Premier League games until the end of the 2009/10 season.

 

The duo paid a record �£1.7bn for the three-season contract.

 

BSkyB is paying about �£4.8m per game and Setanta �£2.8m under the deal.

 

The league also agreed a new �£625m deal for overseas television rights, swelling the coffers of Premier League clubs.

 

'Top product'

 

Mr Bodenheimer described the league as "fabulous property" for a broadcaster to have.

 

"We're going to work on getting as local as we can. We want to deliver product that is relevant in each country," he told the FT.

 

"It's a country-by-country approach. We want to be investors wherever the top sports product is."

 

ESPN currently reaches about 10 million homes in Europe, but winning rights to the Premier League would encourage a much bigger take up, observers say.

 

It would be likely to face tough competition - with both BSkyB and Setanta seeing football as a key asset in winning and retaining subscribers.

 

Disney-owned ESPN has been on a spending spree, recently boosting its online sports presence by buying cricket website Cricinfo and rugby site Scrum.com.

 

In the US it has long-term deals to broadcast the country's three key sports - American football, baseball and basketball.

 

This pisses me off big time! I wish the yanks would piss off and leave football where it belongs. They dont have a clue how our game is ran and they are trying to take over and change it. The Liverpool owners think the transfer market is like their NFL draft system - and as Rafa put it - its not full stop.

 

Ive been thinking for a while the Yanks will do anything for power and to win control over the UK public they would have to do something drastic and that means try buy out our biggest love - football.

 

Piss off and stick to your baseball and handball