MTG extends English football offering with new deal

Jørgen Madsen Lindemann

Modern Times Group (MTG) has secured the exclusive Nordic media rights to the FA Cup, the English Football League Cup and the EFL Championship.

The latest deals build on and extend MTG’s existing contract for the FA Cup and Community Shield to cover Norway from this year and Denmark from next year, as well as Sweden and Finland.

MTG will now air 80 games from the competition, rather than 48 as was previously the case.

MTG has also extended its exclusive media rights to the EFL Cup and EFL Championship in Sweden and Finland to include Norway and Denmark from the start of the 2017-18 season until the end of the 2021-22 season.

The rights package for the EFL Cup knock-out tournament comprises 30 games each season, while the EFL Championship (the world’s wealthiest and second most-watched tier 2 football division) is played out over 46 rounds with the dramatic promotion play-offs and season ending final (dubbed the richest game in football).

The latest deals mean that MTG’s club football coverage in the Nordic region will include these competitions alongside the Champions League and English Premier League competitions. MTG also holds the rights to Spain’s La Liga, Italy’s Serie A, France’s Ligue 1 and Denmark’s Superliga.

Coverage will be aired on a combination of MTG’s free-TV channels, Viasat channels and the Viaplay streaming service, and rights will differ somewhat between countries.

Jørgen Madsen Lindemann, MTG’s president and CEO said: “This is even more great news for football fans in the Nordic countries, as the best possible year-round coverage of top English club football will be available through a single subscription for years to come. Our combined offering will bring fans even more coverage of their favourite teams and players than ever before. We are delighted to have further expanded our successful partnership with the Football Association by extending these key rights.”

Peter Nørrelund, MTG EVP and CEO of MTG Sport said: “The English football leagues and cup competitions are among the highest quality and most competitive in the world. They attract the top managers and players, as well as loyal and growing fan bases. We have higher ratings, more subscribers and more followers than ever before, and are constantly enhancing our coverage. These new rights ensure that we can deliver the most comprehensive international club football offering ever to our customers.”