China's LeTV Sports has signed a long-term agreement with MP & Silva to acquire the rights to broadcast over 1,800 hours of live football matches per season.
These include matches in the Italian Serie A TIM, French Ligue 1, The Emirates FA Cup, Sky Bet Football League Championship, Capital One Cup, Scottish Professional Football League and the Belgian Jupiler Pro League.
Also included in the deal are Brazil National Team Global Tour matches, the England National Team and Under-23 Home Friendly matches, as well as the recently concluded Copa America 2015.
The majority of these broadcast rights have been acquired on an exclusive basis. The strategic partnership also covers future joint projects, which are currently under negotiation.
Lei Zhenjian, the CEO of Letv Sports, said: “Letv Sports is always looking to establish itself as a leader in this industry and invest in the world’s most compelling sports media rights”.
Marco Auletta, the CEO of MP & Silva, noted that LeTV Sports has made impressive strides towards being a major player in the sports broadcast industry. “Both our companies share a lot of synergy for potential growth, as well as the same enterprising spirit, ambition and drive for innovation,” he said.