TV broadcasters agree La Liga rights deal
Reuters - Friday 17 August 2012, 11:20
The dispute between broadcasters
which had threatened to delay the start of the La Liga season
was resolved on Friday when Canal+ and Mediapro agreed a
three-year deal to share the television rights.
Spain's secretary of state for sport Miguel Cardenal oversaw
the negotiations, which settled the numbers of games each
company could show on their individual platforms each week.
Mediapro will continue to show one match on their
free-to-air channel each week and will control the international
rights for La Liga.
"The agreement... establishes a viable model for the Spanish
league and presents a stable scenario for football fans for the
seasons 2012/13, 2013/14 and 2014/15," Mediapro said in a
statement.
"The professional football league (LFP), for their part,
guarantee the new agreement signed by both operators."
A group of 13 first division sides had forced a meeting with
the LFP on Tuesday to call for a settlement of the dispute
saying that it created "a situation of serious legal
insecurity", and had threatened to postpone the season's start.
The new La Liga campaign kicks off this weekend with
champions Real Madrid at home to Valencia and Barcelona hosting
Real Sociedad, both on Sunday.