TV3 outbids RTÉ for 2009 Uefa Cup rights

TV3 ADDED to its growing portfolio of live sports coverage yesterday by outbidding RTÉ for the exclusive terrestrial rights to the Uefa Cup from September 2009.

Under the terms of the deal, TV3 will have the right to show 16 live games from the Uefa Cup for three years under a new centralised television deal for the competition put together by Uefa, football’s governing body in Europe.

It is understood that TV3 has agreed to pay about €750,000 a year for the rights.

The matches will be broadcast on Thursday nights from September to May.

The Uefa Cup is staged annually for the winners of domestic cups and teams that finish just outside the Champions League spots in their home leagues.

In June, the Ballymount-based broadcaster secured rights to show Uefa Champions League games on Tuesday nights from 2009 onwards.

It also began began showing live GAA games this year for the first time, having secured rights to broadcast 10 matches annually from the All-Ireland hurling and football championships.

Pat Kiely, TV3’s commercial director, said the rights package was another important win for the station.

“We’re delighted with this. We’ll now have two nights of European football each week while RTÉ will have one . This really rounds out 12 months of top-class sports coverage for us.”

Dublin-based pay TV operator Setanta Sports has also been awarded live rights by Uefa. The broadcaster will have the second pick of games in Britain and Ireland.

TV3’s rights to the Uefa Cup could coincide with the revamped 50,000 all-seater Lansdowne Road hosting the final. The FAI has bid to host the final in 2011. Ireland has never before hosted the final of a European football competition.

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times