Scudamore facing TV cash squeeze
PREMIER LEAGUE chief executive Richard Scudamore has a seriously difficult task over the next week to sell the remaining TV rights packages for an acceptable price.
The PL say there were ‘multiple bidders’ for the two sets of 20 games, comprising a bank holiday and three midweek rounds, left unsold when the five other packages went for £4.64billion.
These interested parties are believed to be Sky, BT Sport and amazon, whose offers up to now have not been considered big enough.
Yet Sky — cock-a-hoop at buying more games in their four packages for £600m less than last time — have presumably already put on the table what they consider one more package is worth to them and have no reason to go higher.
Demoralised BT Sport desperately need the extra games. But having already paid £1.5m more per game for their Saturday lunchtime package than in the current deal, they might feel let down by Scudamore and not raise their offer by much.
That leaves amazon, who are only dipping their toe in the water and know the remaining packages will be broadcast over a handful of nights, which won’t give them enough presence to make a major impact.
and whatever cash Scudamore and his TV advisers can cajole from the extended auction, it will still leave the domestic rights total significantly below the £ 5.1bn from the present contract.
THE Fa and the Russian organising committee are talking up their World Cup workshop in Sochi at the end of the month, laying on interview opportunities with the 32 head coaches. however, the turn-out is expected to be disappointing, with some of the major European countries regarding the event as more of an administrative exercise for back-up staff. England boss gareth Southgate is sending his assistant Steve holland, along with media and logistics personnel.
THERE is disquiet at world cricket’s rulers the ICC over the ECB being shortlisted for Campaign of the Year at the Sport Industry Awards for their work around the 2017 women’s World Cup. The ICC consider they did the hard yards in selling the tournament — right through to the sell-out Lord’s final, won in dramatic fashion by England — with only peripheral help from the ECB.