Vodafone and Orange secure Mediapro deal for football in Spain

Vodafone Spain and Orange have struck a deal with Catalan broadcaster Mediapro that secures for them the rights to provide coverage of La Liga football and the Copa del Rey for the next three seasons.

Vodafone and Mediapro have struck a deal whereby Vodafone will distribute Mediapro’s beIN Sports La Liga channel, including coverage of Spanish first division matches as well as the Copa del Rey for the 2016-19 seasons.

The agreement means that Vodafone will be able to provide eight matches a day to its subscribers via the channel, including a minimum of 18 each featuring Real Madrid and Barcelona. The channel will be made available via the Ono fibre network and xDSL TV as well as via the Vodafone TV Online OTT service.

Vodafone also has a deal to distribute the beIN Sports channel, which includes coverage of European football competitions, for the next two seasons.

A similar deal for Orange means that both telcos now have guarantees that they will be able to compete with Telefónica’s Movistar, which is January struck a €2.4 billion deal with Mediapro to offer its customers all competitions to which Mediapro held the rights for the next three seasons, including La Liga, the Copa del Rey and the European Champions League and Europa League competitions.

The deals do not include the major game of each day – El Partidazo – to which Telefónica holds the rights. Vodafone and Orange have however reportedly indicated that they will provide a complete offering, either by striking a deal with Telefónica or by filing a complaint with the competition regulator if this is not possible.