Screach brings Polish football into UK commercial venues

Commercial venue sports streaming platform Screach has agreed a deal with Poland’s top-flight football league for the UK.

The deal will see Screach deliver coverage of the PKO Ekstraklasa to bars, cafés and clubs across the UK for the first time in the league’s history. Screach’s deal with the league will commence from the start of the 2022-23 season in July.

Venues will be able to access live streams of the league via subscription or pay-per-view on the Screach platform. While initially only covering the UK, Screach said that the partnership has the scope to expand into other territories with a high population of Polish expats.

While not considered a top European league, interest in the league is high in the UK with the Polish community representing  the largest group of foreign nationals in the UK. 

Robert Rawlinson, CEO of Screenreach, said: “Britain is home to a large and close-knit Polish community, for whom the PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa provides a powerful link to their homeland. From July, Screach will enable the owners and operators of bars, clubs and cafés across the UK to harness the power of that connection to attract and retain Polish football fans in their venues.” 

Marcin Animucki, president of the board of Ekstraklasa SA, said: ““PKO Bank Polski Ekstraklasa is consistently expanding its presence across international markets and looking for new ways to reach fans outside Poland. In our country, football fans tend to watch matches primarily at home. But many Poles living in the UK have embraced the excitement and spectacle of watching a game in the pub with their friends. 

“Thanks to our cooperation with Screach, the Polish Ekstraklasa will be widely available in such venues from the next season. Fans of Polish football will be able to watch games together outside the home, and our league will gain an additional opportunity to increase its recognition and audience.”