TV3 bids for full control of Champions League

TV3 is in line to become a dominant player in the Irish coverage of the Champions League after launching a bid to take control ahead of RTÉ and Eir Sport.

The current deal expires at the end of this year’s competition and an announcement is imminent after the relevant parties all submitted proposals to Uefa.

It is understood that TV3 – which is now backed by Virgin Media and its American owners Liberty Global – has made a substantial offer with a view to seeing off its rivals, and there is strong speculation within the industry that it has been successful.

However, the bidding process is subject to ratification by Uefa, which sells the rights to companies in each country.

TV3 officials remained tight-lipped when asked for comment.

Under the existing deal, TV3 has first pick for Tuesday nights, with RTÉ choosing its preferred match on Wednesdays, and Eir Sport able to show any of the other games.

TV3’s offer would give it full control of Irish coverage, although it would conceivably have the option to enter into a sub-licensing arrangement with other broadcasters – similar to the arrangement it struck with rights-holders RTÉ which allowed the Ballymount-based channel to show a portion of matches at Euro 2016. The loss of the Champions League would represent a major blow to RTÉ, which has already handed over the Six Nations rights, with TV3’s four-year contract kicking off this year. TV3’s new backing also helped them to secure free-to-air European Champions Cup rugby coverage starting from next season.

When contacted by the Irish Independent, a spokesman for RTÉ at Montrose said it would be making no comment.

Eir Sport will have the exclusive rights for Pro 14 rugby for the next three seasons, but the loss of the Champions League would be a setback for the subscription channel.

There will be a change in the Champions League schedule next year with games split across 5.55pm and 8pm kickoffs (Irish time) to facilitate more live broadcasts.

It is a shift from the traditional schedule where all games kick off at 7.45pm.