Amazon Prime has secured broadcast rights to the UEFA Champions League in the UK with a deal worth £1.5 billion, according to reports.
This partnership would mean the platform would split content with the football governing body’s existing broadcast partner, BT Sport, in a new arrangement covering its club competitions for the 2024-2027 rights cycle.
US-based Amazon will exclusively offer UEFA Champions League matches on Tuesday nights for three years. BT Sport, which most recently held the UCL rights exclusively, will pay around £305 million a year to retain the majority of coverage.
This is the second broadcast deal to be secured since a new partnership was made between the European Club Association (ECA) and UEFA to set up a tender process for marketing of the rights.
Furthermore, another deal has been put in place for the BBC to show highlights of Champions League football for the first time following a successful bid for UEFA’s TV rights, The Times revealed.
Moreover, Amazon Prime Video already covers the Champions League in Germany, where it secured a deal worth around €90 million in December 2019.
With a 2020 report stating a 35% growth off the back of Premier League football, the platform believes that showing live sports will increase the amount of Prime subscribers.
Talks between UEFA, the ECA and the European Leagues group are continuing in a bid to resolve how revenue will be distributed between the three parties.