Setanta await Scottish League decision

MEDIA group Setanta will find out later this week if it has won a contract exclusively to broadcast Scottish Premier League football (SPL).

Setanta has been selected as the preferred bidder, paying an estimated €50 million, to broadcast 38 pay-per-view SPL games a year from next season. The 12 chairmen of the SPL clubs will meet on Thursday to rubber-stamp the four-year deal.

Setanta, which was set up by Irish businessmen Michael O'Rourke and Leonard Ryan in London 14 years ago, will snatch the deal from its current holders BBC Scotland.

Setanta already broadcasts SPL games in Britain on digital television channels, but these were not available to Scottish customers.

To recoup its investment to the SPL, Setenta will charge digital customers €10 per game and wants them to sign up for a whole season's matches.

The SPL opted for Setanta as it is seeking to encourage fans back to the grounds as the numbers through the turnstiles has been in decline.

The Irish company will link up with the Scottish production house Wark Clements, which is co-owned by BBC news presenter Kirsty Wark to handle the production of the games. SPL coverage has been available to Irish viewers on RTÉ, as the State-owned broadcaster sub-contracts from Setanta. This agreement ends next season, but RTÉ say no decision on whether to seek its renewal has been made.

RTÉ has won the right to broadcast 15 live English premier league games from next season, which is likely to prove more popular with Irish fans.

Setanta employs more than 70 in offices in Dublin, San Francisco, Sydney, Glasgow and London. It is believed to have annual turnover in the region of £40m and is profitable. Its core business is broadcasting GAA, soccer and rugby to the US, Europe and Australia. It has a burgeoning business of coverage via mobile devices.