Sky Sports seals deal to keep EFL rights for another five years

The deal ends DAZN’s hopes of winning the right to show all EFL matches.

UK.- The English Football League has entered into a £935m five-year deal for media rights with Sky Sports. The broadcaster will show a record number of matches, but the deal ends DAZN’s hopes of gaining the rights to show every EFL game.

Sky Sports will increase its coverage to show 1,059 out of 1,656 EFL matches on Sky Sports channels or via its streaming platforms for TV and mobile, replacing its EFL red button coverage and domestic streaming via iFollow and club streaming services. Domestic streaming audio services will remain alongside existing audio-visual arrangements for international audiences via iFollow and club streaming. It will pay a guaranteed £895m plus £40m in marketing benefits. 

DAZN had argued that the EFL was “under-exposed” due to the number of games that are not broadcast live. It wanted to end the longstanding Article 48 broadcasting blackout imposed between 2.45pm and 5.15pm on Saturdays to enable it to broadcast every game live.

However, under the Sky Sports deal the Saturday afternoon blackout will remain. The league, which is sponsored by Flutter’s Sky Bet, said it would investing significantly in production infrastructure to improve the viewing experience.

Sky Sports Managing Director, Jonathan Licht, concluded: ‘This is a ground-breaking deal for Sky and our long-standing partners, the EFL. We believe that fans of all 72 league clubs will benefit with increased coverage across all the leagues and competitions. 

“With four times as many matches than we currently offer, we will capture even more of the excitement created by this unique league – and in a way that will be immediately accessible to millions of supporters. 

“This is the biggest deal in football, in terms of the number of matches being broadcast and we look forward to working with the EFL and its 72 member clubs to give fans the most entertaining viewing experience.”

EFL chief executive Trevor Birch said: “After completing an extensive tender and negotiation process, this is a landmark broadcast deal for EFL clubs, establishing the League as a premium partner with a world-renowned broadcaster in Sky Sports.  

“This increased investment and coverage from Sky Sports will showcase much more of our compelling match action to fans, while delivering record rights values as we seek to make our clubs sustainable at all levels.”

Birch said Sky Sports had been a good broadcast partner for decades.

He said: “With some 20 million attending Sky Bet EFL matches each season and significant interest in the League at home and abroad, we look forward to growing our collective fan base further and we’d like to thank Sky Sports for its ongoing commitment to the clubs and the communities which this investment will directly support.”

DAZN Bet holds domestic rights to Serie A in Italy and associated Champions League and domestic coverage in Germany and Spain. It’s widely expected to consider making an offer for the Premier League rights when the current deals expire in 2025. Apple is also rumoured to be interested in both the EFL and the Premier League.

Meanwhile, DAZN Bet has chosen Playtech as its lead online casino solutions provider. DAZN Group made a soft launch of its online gambling venture in the UK last summer.