BBC renews Premier League highlights deal

Tony Hall

The BBC has renewed its deal to air Premier League highlights for a further three years, up to and including the 2018/19 football season.

The agreement covers BBC’s long-running weekend highlights show Match Of The Day, which turns 50 this year, and its Sunday morning repeat MOTD2.

It also covers weekend preview show Football Focus, plus a new midweek magazine show that will air at 22:00 Wednesday nights on BBC Two and BBC Two HD.

All of the BBC’s Premier League programmes will be available on the BBC iPlayer.

“Sport matters. It brings the nation together. It can break hearts and raise spirits. And because it matters to the public, it also matters to the BBC. That’s why it’s fantastic news that we have kept the Premier League highlights,” said BBC director general Tony Hall.

The news comes in the same week that Virgin Media has asked Ofcom to pause the current Premier League TV rights auction for live match coverage until the broadcast regulator has concluded an investigation into the process.

In July 2012 Sky and BT paid £3 billion (€4 billion) to carve up live match coverage between 2013 and 2016, with the price likely to increase during the current round of negotiations.