liv Golf Set To Give Away UK TV Rights
The LIV Golf Series is reportedly considering offering live TV rights to UK broadcasters free of charge as it continues to struggle to find a traditional broadcast partner.
The Daily Mail report claims that a fresh round of negotiations with companies including Sky Sports, BT Sport and DAZN before Christmas failed to yield an agreement, leading LIV to consider radical alternatives ahead of the Saudi Arabia-funded rebel tour’s second season.
The inaugural LIV Series last year was only available to UK viewers via streams on Facebook, YouTube and its own website after organisers failed to reach an agreement with broadcaster
Global sports and entertainment platform DAZN did purchase rights for territories including Germany, Italy, Spain and Japan, but didn’t take up the option in the UK market.
Sky Sports’ close relationship with the PGA Tour is seen as a key hurdle for LIV Golf to get past with the UK’s biggest sports broadcaster. Sky signed a new deal to show 36 live events on top of its coverage of the four majors and the Ryder Cup last year. BT Sport and DAZN were unhappy with the price being demanded by LIV.
Streaming giants Amazon and Disney have both shown ambitions to enter the sports broadcasting market is recent times, but an offer from either never materialised.
The LIV Golf Series has already cost Saudi’s Public Investment Fund over £1bn to poach some of the biggest names from the PGA Tour. The failure to secure a UK broadcaster is a blow to the profitability of the project.
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