Deadline Hits For Premier League Overseas Rights

The deadline for submission of bids for the international TV rights contract for
the FA Premier League expires today.

The new three-year contract, which runs from the start of the 2007/08 season
through to the summer of 2010, is expected to attract a number of lucrative bids
from the top rights-selling agencies.

The move marks a significant structural change from the previous contract
which saw the league sell the international rights itself on a
territory-by-territory basis. The league brought in £320m from the sale of its
international rights for the three-year period from 2004/05 to the end of the
current season.

Live rights to all 380 matches each season are included in the packages as
well as centrally produced weekly highlights and preview magazine shows.