British free-to-air network announces three season deal to show Spanish top flight
UK fans of Spanish football will be overjoyed to learn that action from La Liga is heading to free television in the form of a new deal between the current La Liga rights holder, subscription based live streamer Premier Sports, and ITV.
The free-to-air staple of British television has signed on to show live coverage of 10 La Liga matches per season for the next three years, meaning that some of the biggest teams in the world will be competing on free TV in the UK.
The 10 selected fixtures will be made available on flagship channel ITV, as well as ITV4, and via live streaming on the broadcaster's own dedicated OTT platform, the ITV Hub.
The agreement between ITV and La Liga, via Premier Sports, will kick into gear with a huge clash between Real Sociedad and Barcelona this Sunday (August 21st). Pre-game analysis and punditry will begin at 20.30, before kick-off at 21.00.
The deal willl run until the end of the 2024/25 season and all of the 10 matches shown live by ITV will include at least one of Real Madrid, Barcelona or Atletico Madrid, meaning the elite of Spanish football will always be included.
Niall Sloane, Director of Sport at ITV said: “This deal ensures free-to-air coverage for all football fans of one of the most entertaining leagues in the world. The deal with Premier Sports will give fans the chance to see some of the most iconic clubs and world-class players in action, live on ITV.”
The 10 matches available on free-to-air television with ITV will simulataneously be aired in the UK on Premier Sports and La Liga TV, the platforms which own the rights to the entire La Liga campaign.
This move is the latest newsworthy TV rights deal involving ITV Sport, as the free-to-air broadcaster continues to improve on its growing sports portfolio.
ITV also recently announced that it will produce and air an EFL highlights show every week, which will include coverage of matches from across the English football pyramid - the Championship, League One, League Two, the League Cup and the EFL Trophy - throughout the 2022/23 season.
This summer has seen a number of big football rights contracts handed out to free-to-air broadcasters, including ITV. It's a fantastic time to be a football fan based in the UK.
Stay tuned for plenty more football business news, and don't forget to check out our football live streaming page, where you can watch action from some of Europe's biggest leagues including La Liga, Serie A and the Bundesliga via low price live streams.
