Sky ready to fight for PL rights

Sky Sports managing director Barney Francis insists the satellite broadcaster has moved on from the loss of Champions League TV rights to BT Sport and will fight tooth and nail to retain the Premier League.

The arrival of BT Sport as a major competitor has focused minds at Sky, and Francis admitted there is also a lurking threat from Qatar-owned BeIN Sports - the rebranded Al Jazeera Sport – which has been buying up global rights.

BT Sport will show Champions League games from 2015 and Francis said Sky is ready to move quickly if the Premier League decides to bring forward its next rights tender to capitalise on the increased competition in the domestic market.

Francis told the Sports Pro Live conference in London: “Right now the rights market is really hot in the UK.

“It is up to the Premier League to tell us when they want to go. We are in a position where we can always move pretty quickly on this.

“We are keen to get what we want out of the Premier League auction and we are working hard on that. We have been partners of the Premier League for 23 years and when we got involved it was a key step in the development of Sky Sports.

“But [Premier League chief executive] Richard Scudamore would say the same thing, that every three years the umbilical cord is broken.”

In terms of losing its Champions League rights, Francis added: “We had a value on that and the truth is it represents three per cent of the Sky Sports viewing share.

“We put a value on that and if you don’t get it you move on and do something else.”

The Premier League is obliged to select at least two broadcasters for live matches in order to satisfy European Union rules and currently Sky has four packages and BT Sport has two, and Francis conceded that the marketplace had changed by the arrival of the communications giant as a serious competitor.

He said: “It pushes us hard. But that question somewhat discredits our other competitors. We’re absolutely focussing on what we’re doing.

“We look at everyone as a threat. But in the UK a lot of that hinges on the Premier League and that’s a big bet. We wouldn’t be the company we are unless we were looking out for a range of threats.

“We all know BeIN Sports intentions globally but whether that’s a business that makes any money for them I couldn’t tell you.

“For a sports business, it’s all about live sports. The big threats will be people who are willing to take a big bet. Everyone around the world is picking up on non-live, live is expensive. It’s a big investment up front, but it’s a big reward.”