BT Sport has won another significant sports rights victory by securing exclusively live German Bundesliga football rights in the UK and until 2017.
The new two-year contract, starting from the 2015/16 season, means that BT Sport will show around 115 live matches a season from the highly-rated German top flight, around 15 more matches than pay-TV broadcaster’s current deal.
BT Sport will also have the rights to show matches from the DFL Supercup matches, plus additional previews and highlights programming.
The Bundesliga deal will add to the European riches on offer from BT Sport as it coincides with the start its exclusive live rights to screen the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.
In a surprising move last autumn, BT won the exclusive live broadcast rights to all 350 matches from both tournaments for three seasons from 2015/16.
BT Sport already holds the current rights to show Bundesliga matches and it is believed they fought off strong competition from rivals Sky Sports to retain the contract.
For the remainder of the current season and next season, BT Sport’s network of channels will continue to show around 100 live matches, plus action from the DFL Supercup and preview and highlights shows.
Free-to-air viewers also have access to Bundesliga highlights of courtesy of a weekly show on ITV4, which has been running since 2012.
The action from the German top flight has seen some of the most fascinating football on offer in Europe this year.
Current Bundesliga and Champions League holders Bayern Munich have powered ahead of their close rivals Borussia Dortmund, who they beat in the Wembley final of the UEFA Champions League last season, and Bayer Leverkusen, managed by former Liverpool legend Sami Hyypia.
The UK audience reach for the Bundesliga on BT Sport this season is up 70 per cent from last season’s audience figure.
Simon Green, head of BT Sport, said: “We are really thrilled that we will continue to be the home of Bundesliga for the next three seasons until 2017.
“Combined with our incredible line-up of exclusively live matches from the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League, the Bundesliga takes its place in our schedule as one of the premium European league competitions, having provided both European finalists last season.
“Our viewers have loved the opportunity to watch live matches involving some of the most outstanding teams in Europe and pitting charismatic managers like Pep Guardiola and Jurgen Klopp against each other.
“I am delighted that the Bundesliga recognised that BT Sport has made a big commitment to German football and will continue to promote and foster the league for UK sports lovers in the future.”
Jorg Daubitzer, managing director of DFL Sports Enterprises, said: “Bundesliga football is held in high regard at BT Sport, something which is not least of all reflected in the broad-based high quality reporting which it receives.
“Never before have so many Bundesliga matches been shown with such broad penetration in the United Kingdom. We are very pleased to be able to continue this successful cooperation.”
BT Sport is the UK’s newest sports TV service with three channels showing live top tier action from the Barclays Premier League and the Aviva Premiership as well as a host of other sport.
BT has more than two-and-a-half million customers who take the service and the channels reach more than four million homes when BT’s wholesale deal with Virgin Media is taken into account.
It is also the home for other top European league football, showing regular live matches from France’s Ligue1 and Italy’s Serie A.
BT Sport’s exclusive live coverage of the Bundsliga continues this weekend with three live games, including Bayern Munich v Schalke at 5.30pm, Saturday March 1, on BT Sport 1.
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