Apple wants a piece of English Premier League pie, according to reports

UK newspaper the Daily Mail has triggered rumours that tech giant Apple is planning to bid for the next cycle of English Premier League rights in the UK (2025/26 onwards).

Although the paper doesn’t cite any source, the report is lent credence by the fact that Apple has already entered the sports rights market via its ten-year partnership with Major League Soccer. If the tech giant does decide to bid however, it will need to dig much deeper into its reserves, with UK rights to the EPL worth around $2bn a year – compared to global rights for MLS which are valued at around $250m a year.

The current rights holders are Comcast-owned Sky, BT Sport (now a JV between BT and Warner Bros Discovery) and Amazon Prime – which each have a tranche of live rights. All three are likely to be in the market for EPL rights next time round, with Amazon having incrementally established itself as a major force in European soccer rights.

The Mail says Apple’s interest in European soccer is illustrated by its new documentary, The War On Football, which tells the story of the European Super League. It also argues that US owners of EPL clubs are pushing for big tech investment to drive up rights valuations. Negotiations for the next contract are likely to take place in early 2024.