The Dutch Eredivisie has extended its partnership with sports events and representation company IMG, which will continue to handle the league’s media rights.
IMG will retain its role until 2030, when the contract will again come up for renewal. This extends a long-running partnership between the Dutch top-flight and the London-based company, which maintains an extensive presence in global sports media representation.
Specifics of the renewal will see IMG distribute the league’s international media rights across 143 countries and territories through 35 broadcast partners. The deal will cover the next five seasons and encompass media distribution in all international regions except the Netherlands.
The renewed arrangement will also include a global advisory element, with IMG providing consultancy services to the Eredivisie to support its growth and branding ambitions. IMG states that its advisory services will cover fan engagement as well as its media and international market strategy.
“IMG has been a long-standing and trusted partner of the Eredivisie,” said Bas Raemakers, Head of International Commerce & Strategy, Eredivisie CV.
“We are delighted to continue and expand the relationship with IMG and further build on the league’s growing international presence.
“The development of our media product, especially in a number of strategic countries, is key to the league’s ambition for further growth in the competitive European football landscape.”
The Dutch Eredivisie ranks in the top 20 sports leagues by revenue, though it still lags significantly behind other prominent European leagues – its revenue is particularly dwarfed by the likes of the Premier League, German Bundesliga, Spanish LaLiga and Italian Serie A, though given the global prominence of these leagues this is not a criticism.
Though not as home to many household names as the English or Spanish top-flights, the Dutch league still has some notable brands, Ajax and Feyenoord being two of the most notable.
Building up engagement with international fan bases of its clubs and in turn driving the league’s profile and reach will likely be a key goal of IMG and the Eredivisie moving forwad. The duo will look to build on previous efforts to reach new audiences, such as media rights exposure clinched in Japan earlier this year.
Robert Klein, Managing Director, Football, Media, IMG said: “Over nearly 25 years, our successful collaboration has delivered commercial growth and opportunity for the Eredivisie, helping the league reach new audiences around the world.
“We’re proud to extend and evolve our long-standing partnership with the Eredivisie to further drive awareness of the league, its clubs and players, as well as setting the league up for long-term commercial success.
“IMG is uniquely placed to provide guidance and expertise for rightsholders on a global scale across key growth drivers that include competition structure, brand partnerships, digital, production, streaming, and media strategy and distribution.”