Australian broadcaster Foxtel is to acquire the broadcasting rights to some of the highest-profile club-specific TV channels in English soccer's Premier League, reports, www.sportspromedia.com/.
The pay-TV group has secured the rights to Manchester United's MUTV, Liverpool's LFC TV, Manchester City TV, Arsenal TV and Chelsea TV in a wide-ranging deal.
The channels were previously carried in Australia by Foxtel's rival Fetch TV, and hold the rights to show delayed full coverage of games, as well as cover club documentaries and behind-the-scenes shows.
The move is part of Foxtel's attempt to appease customers unhappy that it lost live Premier League rights to rival Optus, which purchased them for AUS$63 million (US$ 47.71 million) per season in a three-year deal signed in November.
Foxtel began its fightback against Optus in March when it announced a deal to broadcast games from Europe's other leading soccer leagues – Spain's La Liga, Italy's Serie A, France's Ligue 1 and Germany's Bundesliga – as well as the Uefa Champions League final, and this capture is the latest move to keep its footballing customer base.