Thursday 12 November 2015 11:54, UK
Sky Sports has been awarded six packs of live rights to the Premier League in Ireland, further strengthening its position as the home of sport and unrivalled choice for sports fans.
The new deal means that Sky Sports will be the only place for viewers to follow more of the best matches and the complete story of the Premier League for at least another four years.
Sky has won the rights to broadcast up to 159 Premier League matches a season, to be screened exclusively live in the Republic of Ireland from 2016/17-2018/19.
With up to 33 matches to be shown at 3pm on Saturdays for the first time on Sky Sports in Ireland, customers in the Republic of Ireland will see an increase of 43 live matches per season compared to the current season.
With up to four times as many live matches as any other broadcaster, football fans in Ireland will be able to rely on Sky Sports for the top match picks throughout the season across four days of the weekend, including matches on Friday evenings for the first time.
The increased schedule of live Premier League matches will be a key part of the unrivalled breadth of coverage offered by Sky Sports across seven channels. After 36 rights deals in 2014 and 2015 so far, including golf, rugby and football, Sky continues to provide customers with long-term visibility over its market-leading rights portfolio.
Five of the packs secured within the new deal will mirror the UK rights won by Sky Sports earlier this year for 126 matches, while the Saturday 3pm matches are solely for Ireland audiences and cannot be broadcast in the UK.
Under the new deal, Sky Sports' Irish customers can enjoy:
- More live matches than ever before, with up to 159 fixtures a season versus 116 under the existing contract.
- Live coverage on more days of the week, with matches on Friday evenings for the first time as well as Saturday lunchtime and 3pm, Sunday afternoons and Monday evenings.
- The best match picks, including 26 first picks and 31 second picks, meaning that Sky Sports will offer more of the biggest matches that matter.
- Live coverage of every Premier League club up to 26 times a season.
- Rights to offer live coverage across a range of platforms, including online and mobile.
Barney Francis, Managing Director of Sky Sports, said: "These rights mean that Sky Sports remains the home of sport in Ireland.
"From the 2016-17 season, our viewers in Ireland will be able to enjoy even more of the best Premier League matches across more days of the week than ever before. By securing rights to live matches on Friday evenings for the first time, Sky Sports will bring Premier League fans an entirely new way to start the weekend."
JD Buckley, Managing Director of Sky Ireland, added: "This is great news for our customers. The popularity of the Premier League combined with our unrivalled coverage of golf, rugby and GAA means that Sky Sports customers will continue to enjoy the best coverage of their favourite sports."
