ESPN May Be Interested In Premier League Rights

American broadcasting network ESPN has announced today that it would be interested in bidding for the rights to broadcast the English Premier League when the tender process opens up at the end of the 2009/10 season, citing it as a desirable prospect for any broadcasting network.

In an interview with the Financial Times today, George Bodenheimer of ESPN has suggested that he would see the acquisition of the Premiership rights as an ideal platform with which ESPN can build its European viewing audience, with a view to increasing its foothold in the region.

ESPN is presently strongly performing within the US market and further afield, yet it has until now failed to secure any substantial European network holdings reaching just 10 million households throughout the entire region, which it is thought would be considered its next major target. With the Premier League rights set to expire soon, this could prove to be the ideal target.

Rights to broadcast Premier League football in England are currently held jointly with BSkyB and Setanta, at a combined contract value of £1.7 billion across the three season term of the contract, suggesting the level of value that can be provided by the exclusivity deals on this kind of sports events.

In his comments today to the media, Bodenheimer seemed to imply that ESPN would consider playing an active role in the bidding processes for the Premier league when they arose, in order to supplement its current position in the US which sees it air all the action from American football, basketball and baseball giving it a firm foothold in the market.

It remains to be seen whether the Disney subsidiary will look to become involved in the tender for the rights when they fall for renewal in two season’s time.

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