Fox Sports en Español acquires rights for UEFA Champions League.
March 3, 2009
Fox Sports en Español announced the acquisition of the U.S. Spanish-language media rights to the UEFA Champions League, Europe’s most prestigious annual club competition, and the yearly UEFA SuperCup match. Fox Sports en Español’s exclusive coverage of the Champions League will begin with the Qualifying Round this July and will continue through the 2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 seasons, providing an unprecedented level of live and prime-time coverage for the tournament in the U.S. Hispanic market.
Under the terms of its agreement with UEFA, Fox Sports en Español will televise 94 live and premiere UEFA Champions League and SuperCup matches each season to its 14 million cable and satellite households in the country, of which over 5 million are Hispanic households. Fox Sports en Español will also have the rights to broadcast ancillary UEFA Champions League programming, including preview and review shows, archived matches and magazine programs. FSE’s website, www.foxsportsla.msn.com, will feature UEFA Champions League video highlights, as will the Fox Sports Móvil offering for video-enabled wireless devices.
“We are thrilled to bring the UEFA Champions League to the first and biggest Spanish-language sports network in the United States,” said David Sternberg, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Fox Sports en Español. “This prestigious tournament will strengthen our programming lineup immeasurably and deliver outstanding year-round action on multiple platforms to Latino soccer fans around the country.”
In a statement, UEFA said:
“UEFA is delighted to announce this new media rights deal for the UEFA Champions League in the U.S. and Caribbean with Fox Sports International. The agreement guarantees that football fans throughout the region will benefit from great access to the competition over the next three seasons. UEFA welcomes the commitment demonstrated by Fox Sports International and very much looks forward to developing a successful relationship with this renowned broadcaster during 2009-12.”
Fox Sports en Español’s Champions League coverage will include one live and one premiere match telecast per match day – including prime-time transmissions of live offerings from sister networks Fox Soccer Channel and FSN – as well as live pregame and postgame shows from its Los Angeles studios. All live matches will kick off at 2:45 p.m. ET on Tuesdays and Wednesdays during the course of the season. Fox Sports en Español will also televise a 30-minute Champions League highlight show each Friday.
