Sky dig deep for England games
SKY SPORTS are set to return to broadcasting England matches by sealing a contract to show UEFA’s new competition, the Nations League.
the rest of England’s competitive fixtures will remain on free-to-air ITV, with the combined deal understood to be worth more than £200million over four years — double the value of their current contract.
the complex Nations League, which divides Europe’s 54 countries into four pools and then three or four sub-groups, starts after the 2018 World Cup.
Sky will show England’s home and away games in the four-year cycle, which will feature Nations League finals in 2019 and 2021 — and a maximum of six games if a country reaches the final.
the Nations League was the brainchild of shamed UEFA president Michel platini, who has been banned from all football for eight years.
England’s qualifying games for the World Cup and European Championship between 2018 and 2022 will stay with ITV, while the few remaining friendlies are split between the two networks.
this will see ITV show 24 England games live and Sky a maximum of 16, although the proposed UEFA packages are yet to be signed.
the deal is expected to value every England game at well over £5m.
this 100 per cent increase is a major boost for the national team at a time when it is often overshadowed by the premier League.
It also demonstrates that Sky still have some money left for live football after almost breaking the bank to land their £11m-a-match premier League rights.
ALAN
SHEARER is a far different character now as an opinionated pundit on Match of
the Day than the ultra-bland footballer who famously wrote about celebrating Blackburn’s 1994-95 championship season by creosoting his garden fence. And Shearer (right) also made a very accomplished debut in the difficult co-commentator role on Radio 5 Live for the 3-3 draw between Manchester United and Newcastle — with BBC Radio keen to use him again when he is available. NEW England rugby union coach Eddie Jones is such good value at press conferences that he can make absolute howlers as he did yesterday — ‘England have never lost a Calcutta Cup match’ (well, not since 2008) and ‘England are playing Italy at home (away, actually) — and still give the impression that he knows what he’s talking about.
the best of charismatic Eddie’s one-line gems yesterday saw him describe recalled winger Chris Ashton as ‘mad as a cut snake’ and saying of England squad debutant Jack Clifford: ‘I didn’t know him from a bar of soap.’
DERBY
COUNTY owner Mel Morris soon found out that one good turn deserves another. Two days after he donated Derby’s £23,000 share of gate receipts from their FA Cup third-round tie to struggling Hartlepool — from where Derby took the late great Brian Clough as manager — Derby drew Manchester United at home in the fourth round, which will be the BBC’s first choice of match and worth £144,000 to Derby in television payments.