Apple considers bidding for Premier League and EFL rights in UK
Apple is pondering entering the race to land the Premier League and EFL rights for broadcasts in the United Kingdom. Right now, Premier League rights belong to Sky, BT Sport and Amazon. That deal started in 2022 and runs through 2025. Those three companies paid a combined $6.3 billion for the three-year deal.
Now, though, Apple could be breaking up the hegemony over the Premier League held by Sky Sports. According to Bloomberg, Apple’s interest in English soccer is both for the Premier League and EFL games. While the Premier League would force the media mega company to wait until 2025 to start, the EFL rights would be available for 2024 onwards.
This interest in the Premier League and the other professional divisions in England would add to a fairly limited portfolio. Right now, Apple’s live sports coverage is limited to Major League Soccer and select Major League Baseball games. That being said, the MLS deal is worldwide for the entire league. It demonstrates that Apple is not afraid to shell out money for leagues. The partnership between MLS and Apple is a massive 10-year deal worth $250 million per year. Moreover, reports show Apple is looking into adding some college football to its live sports catalog.
That deal, though, is worldwide. Any Apple in the deal in the Premier League and the rest of English soccer would be specific to the UK. Apple was a quiet contender for the US rights to the Premier League back in 2022. However, NBC’s deal expires at the conclusion of the 2027/28 campaign.
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Apple could be in on Premier League and EFL rights in UK
In a way, Apple already shows some Premier League. Of course, it is all fictional via Ted Lasso. However, the fact that the Premier League is now prominent in the show with logos and kits after the show and league agreed a deal worth over $500,000.
In regards to the EFL, the Football League did say it was reviewing bids for its media rights deal. Peter Hutton, a former media partnerships executive at Meta, said live sports like the Premier League and EFL would give Apple access to a pre-established audience.
“Apple will be looking closely at their early data on MLS and MLB experiments, but the unique ability of sport to change a predefined audience’s behavior means it’s a safer bet than entertainment content to grow the Apple TV international market,” Hutton told Bloomberg.
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